


Vultures

by LeviApple22



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern with Bending (Avatar), Bullying, Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Hurt Zuko (Avatar), M/M, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Protective Sokka (Avatar), Verbal Abuse, Zhao (Avatar) Is An Asshole, Zuko (Avatar) Needs a Hug, Zuko (Avatar)-centric, Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:15:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 29,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29374443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeviApple22/pseuds/LeviApple22
Summary: "We're moving to Republic City!"That was the last thing Sokka expected to hear at 12 in the afternoon while fixing his snow boots.-Hakoda just got elected to be representative of the Southern Water tribe in Republic City meaning Sokka and Katara have to move with him to the United Republic. At the new private schools they attend, they meet new friends who eventually become family. However the pressure to fit in has Sokka commit some mistakes. Including some harmful misunderstandings with a certain prince.
Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 76
Kudos: 125





	1. Goodbye South Pole

**Author's Note:**

> Hello guys! This is my first fanfic on here so bare with me. This is basically modern with bending. Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom still have monarchies, Northern Water Tribe still have a monarchy/chief, Southern Water Tribe has their chief, etc. The 100 years war was more like the 30 year war that happened 80 years ago and was stopped before the genocide of the air nomads so they are still around. The kids are just attending school in Republic City. Please comment and ask if there's anything I need to clarify!

The morning’s sunlight filtered in through the opening of the small window, casting a brightening light to beam across the occupant’s face. Sokka groaned and tried stuffing his head under his pillow, not wanting to wake up. He had stayed up late the night before FaceTiming his best friend Yue who loved pulling all nighters but hated when she would have no one to talk to. She often pressured Sokka into staying up with her till nearly dawn. He didn't mind, he would do anything for her but sometimes he regretted doing it once morning hit. 

“Sokka, wake up! It’s already 11 in the morning,” he heard from outside his door. He pretended not to hear and tried falling back asleep but less than 10 minutes passed before he was once again startled awake by hard pounding on the door.

“If you don’t wake up, I’m telling Gran Gran to wake you instead!”

He screamed into his pillow. He did not feel like getting a cup of water thrown in his face by his grandmother, thank you very much. His sister, Katara, took that as a sign that he was finally awake and finally left from behind his door. 

He finally stood up, stretching with a loud yawn. _I wonder why she’s so excited this morning_ . He shivered as the fresh, cold Antarctic air hit his bare back. He forgot to close his window and curtain last night due to getting distracted by Yue’s story about this girl she met at the beginning of the school semester. 

Yue attended an all girls private school in Republic City since her father, the Northern Water tribe chief, believed she should get the best schooling. Republic City School for Girls. He missed his best friend dearly but it wasn’t as he saw her very often considering they lived across the world from one another. They mainly saw each other during world leader summits or water tribe events. 

He put on an old hoodie from his favorite pro-bending team and made his way to the family room where Katara sat on the couch. Phone in hand, she barely noticed him walk in while she scrolled through Twitter. She looked up when she heard his footsteps and her face beamed in excitement. 

“Finally you’re awake! Dad said he has some news he wants to talk to us about and he seemed nervous about sharing it,” she states. 

“Hmm.. I wonder what it could be. Where is he anyways?” Sokka questioned as he made his way to the kitchen to grab an apple. Apples, among other things, were imported every two weeks from the Earth Kingdom. Apples were one of his favorite fruits and he always looked forward to the ship carrying the imports arriving. 

“I’m not sure, he said he was going to wait for you to wake up a bit. He would have told us already had you not stayed up all night again,” she huffed. But she understood how much he treasured his FaceTime sessions with Yue. 

“Sorry, sorry! Actually, not sorry. It’s been so long since I spoke to her since she’s so busy with projects since we’re nearing the end of the semester. I can’t believe it's November already,” Sokka sighed in happiness. Break was coming soon. Him and Katara attended the small high school in the village and would be let out for a two week break in December to coincide with the other nations’ school breaks. While most of the world was on its way to transition into winter, the Southern Water tribe has been in summer the last few months. It was odd hearing Yue refer to her upcoming break as “winter break”. He often forgot that there were more than two seasons in the other nations. 

After scrolling through their phones and playing against one another on the iMessage games, their dad finally announced his arrival. He came in through the door carrying various papers and stuffing them into a binder.

“Katara, Sokka! Good morning. Or should I say afternoon?” he said with a raised eyebrow at Sokka. Sokka rolled his eyes and went to hug his dad good morning. 

“So what’s this news Katara said you had to tell us?”

“Ah- yes. I think you guys might want to sit down for this,” he said. Deep down he feared the reaction of his kids once they heard the news. It could go two ways: excitement or anger.

They quickly sat down. 

“Hurry and tell us, you’re making us anxious!”

He took a deep breath and began, “Do you remember how six years ago I decided to step down from being chief?” They nodded, painful memories brought forth in their minds.

Hakoda knew they remembered. It was right after their mom’s death. Hakoda felt like it was too much for him at the time and stepped down so his second in command, Bato, could take his place. He wanted to be home to care for Katara and Sokka, who were 9 and 10 at the time. Although his mother lived with them and always helped out with caring for the kids, he did not feel like being alone either. Now, Katara was almost 15 and a freshman in high school while Sokka was 16 and a sophomore. He felt that it was time to take on leadership for the tribe again. The opportunity came a few days ago.

“Well, I think it’s time for me to return back to work. I miss working and knowing I was doing my part in keeping our tribe safe and well.”

“That’s great, dad! Of course we’ll support you in this. Is Bato stepping down?” Sokka questioned. Bato seemed to love being chief and was one of the best the tribe has had, apart from his dad. 

“Well… that’s the part that I need to tell you guys. I would never ask for my old position again, not after Bato has grown so accustomed to it and has brought so many great changes to the tribe,” Hakoda said. 

“Oh? Then where will you work?” Katara asked, feeling confused. Her dad was old but not nearly old enough to be part of the elders. She knew there was no other position in the tribe that would be to his liking.

“You see, the elders and Bato became aware of how I wanted to return back to a leadership role. An opportunity finally came a few weeks ago and with some deciding, they all believed that I would be best for the job.”

The kids sat silently, waiting for him to finish the news. Sokka was getting antsy. He grabbed his snow boots and began putting them on to give him something to do. He never did well with waiting for important news. He liked getting told straightforwardly rather than building up the suspense. 

"We're moving to Republic City!"

That was the last thing Sokka expected to hear at 12 in the afternoon while fixing his snow boots. He froze, processing the information. Beside him, Katara immediately jumped up in anger.

“What?! Why?!”

“They recommended and elected me to be the representative for the Southern Water Tribe! Guys, this is such a good opportunity for me, for us. They thought I would fit the roll well due to all my years of experience of being chief,” Hakoda pleaded. His daughter was shaking, fists clenched. Sokka was sitting stiffly, deep in though.

“We can’t leave! This is the only place we’ve ever known! This is where mom was born, where mom lived! I don’t want to leave,” Katara cried and sat back down on the couch, arms around herself. Hakoda looked to his son, who has been silent so far.

He was shocked to see a small smile appear on his face. 

“Republic City… that’s where Yue is!” he said in glee. He shut up once he felt Katara’s glare on him. 

“I’m glad you’re excited, son. Katara, please… this won’t be a permanent position. We are not selling our home, Gran Gran will still be living here. We will come back during breaks and for vacations, please don’t think of this as abandoning the tribe. We are doing this _for_ the tribe,” Hakoda said. 

“I need time to think about this. I’m happy for you, dad, but I just need time to process,” she said with tears in her eyes. She stood up and ran to her room.

Hakoda looked to his son and was relieved that at least one of his children was pleased about the move. He went over to Sokka and brought him in for a hug. “Thank you for taking this idea with an open mind, Sokka. I know this must be hard for you too,” he said.

“Of course I’m a little sad about leaving the tribe for a while but I’m excited too at the idea of visiting such a new place. Plus Yue is in Republic City,” he cheered. “Can I tell her the news now or do you have to formally announce your new position first?” he asked.

“You can tell her. I believe they’re making the announcement tomorrow,” his dad said as he pulled away from the hug. “I’m going to go tell your grandmother now. Thank you for accepting this, Sokka,” he said with a smile and left the room. 

Sokka pulled out his phone and sent a quick text to Yue.  
S: _guess whos moving to republic city??_


	2. Republic City

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys!! Decided to whip up another quick chapter. From now on out I'm going to try and make them a bit longer so we'll see how that goes. So far there's a bunch of plot, no dialogue.. I know, I'm sorry! Trying to figure out how to balance it! I also just wanted to get some background info out of the way. Enjoy the chapter!

Hakoda’s new leadership role as the Southern Water Tribe representative was officially announced and the small family began preparations for the big move. Katara, after a few weeks, finally came around to the idea and was now just as excited as Sokka. Hakoda signed her up to attend Republic City School for Girls and though it was last minute for students to be enrolling to the prestigious school, kids of the representatives got special privilege and entry. 

Sokka was enrolled to the elite all boys school Yue Bay Boys Academy. He hid his anxiety beneath the cover of being excited. He knew he was capable of excelling in his subjects but he was worried about fitting in. He’s spent his whole life with his tribe, hardly ever venturing out of it unless it was for short trips for his dad’s world leader summits or the Northern Water Tribe. The Southern Tribe was a tight-knit community, no one ever showed off their money since there wasn’t really much to show off. He knew it would be different once he arrived in Republic City.

Yue Bay Boys Academy was known for providing education to the sons of the rich and powerful. This ranged from nobles and monarchs to those with old money. He knew Katara’s school was the same but he didn’t want to project his worries unto her since she seemed to not have any regarding the school yet. He also didn’t want to worry his dad since he worked so hard to get him into the school since they were coming in during the middle of the school year. 

“Are you done packing? The boat is coming in less than two hours.” He looks up and sees Katara leaning against the door frame. 

“Yes but since we literally have no summer or spring clothing we might have to go shopping once we arrive,” he says with excitement. If there’s one thing he’s excited for apart from seeing Yue, it's the fact that there’s seasons in Republic City. Plus shopping for new clothes is always fun. Shopping in general if we're being honest.

“I think it’s currently winter over there so we’ll still be able to wear some of our current things for now,” Katara states even though she’s just as enthusiastic as he is at the idea of seeing the difference in weather and climate. 

After a few hours and the family was all packed up, they said goodbye to the tribe and to Gran Gran. It was finally time to go. They went down the port and onto the boat that was transporting them to the closest airport. They waved goodbye as the ship departed.

“I can’t believe we’re actually leaving,” Katara whispered beside him, tears in her eyes. He blinked his away, not wanting to worry her or dad. However with a side glance, he could see his father with tears streaming down his face. _Okay, I guess I’ll cry too._  
-

After a two day trip, the boat finally arrived near Omashu Airport just before midnight. They quickly checked in their bags and boarded a small private plane that was provided to all the representatives for traveling back and forth from Republic City to their home nation. Katara began lecturing her dad that he better not use it often due to air pollution and greenhouse gasses as soon as they settled into their seats. 

Sokka sighed and put on his earphones knowing it would be a five hour flight ahead. He closed his eyes and let sleep overtake him. The time change has been messing with him and he’s felt exhausted these last few days. That’s why their dad made sure to leave right before their two week break began so they could grow accustomed to the change and be prepared for school. 

_Fuck… school._ He had successfully avoided thinking about school these last few days but he just had to remind himself again. Although it wasn’t much of a big deal for him back home, the fact that he was a non-bender has begun to bother him now. He’s never really been around an element that wasn’t water. In fact what he’s dreading the most is being around firebenders. 

Although the Fire Nation has stayed out of trouble since the last war 80 years ago, it was no secret that they still felt superior to all the other nations. They were rather secretive, not much known about the nation or even the royal family. There are hardly photographs of the royal children and they don’t seem to have social media either. Whenever they arrive with their father, Fire Lord Ozai, when they attend the summits, they are quick to disappear before they could mingle with the other nations. Sokka hasn’t been to a summit in 6 years. He doesn’t even have a vague idea on how the royal children look like apart from the usual black hair and pale skin all Fire Nation citizens seem to have.

Rumors, usually told and spread by the Earth Kingdom, mention how they still teach propaganda to their citizens in secret. Not to mention the accident… _No. Right now is not the time to think about it._ Point is, he has a few reasons to be wary of firebenders. 

“Representative Hakoda and company, we will be landing in just a few minutes. Please buckle up,” the pilot's voice rang out through the small cabin. Sokka hadn’t even realized he’d been spacing out and thinking about the Fire Nation for the last 5 hours. 

“We’re finally here, thank Tui and La,” Katara said with a loud yawn. 

We gasp loudly as the city’s bright lights get closer and closer. He can’t believe it’s been six years since he last came to the city. In a way, the city almost looked much newer with new skyscrapers painting the background in the distance. Finally, the plane landed.

“Hurry up and grab your bags so we can get to our new home as fast as possible,” Hakoda rushes them along. He was exhausted after preparing for this trip during the last two months. He just wants to fall asleep and deal with everything else tomorrow. 

They get all their bags and wheel them towards the front where a black, sleek van is waiting for them to arrive. The chauffeur greets them and helps put their bags in the trunk before moving back to the driver’s seat.

“You’ll be living in a small gated community where all the other representatives and their families stay too. Other families live in the neighborhood as well but believe me, they won’t bother you. The neighborhood is known for its privacy,” the chauffeur states. 

Eventually we arrive at a large gate. The chauffeur puts down his window and types in a code. “The code is 7632,” he says after the gates open and drives inside. Sokka can’t even hide his gasp once the houses come into view. They are much more than houses... they are mansions! 

“I can’t personally tell you who your neighbors are due to security and privacy concerns but you can always talk to them yourselves tomorrow,” the chauffeur says and then stops in front of one of the large homes. He hands us a key and helps us put our suitcases near the front door.

We thank him and bid him good night before finally making our way inside the home. We don’t even try to take anything in, too tired from the long trip. Katara claims a room and locks her door, Sokka doing the same. 

At last, the trio all fall into deep sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need to work on my third person point of view.. Thanks for reading!


	3. Settling In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stuff is about to get interesting soon. Just have to get through the boring stuff first!

The next few days after their arrival was filled with sleeping and unpacking. The house only came furnished with mattresses and bed frames, so there was still a lot the family needed to buy. They decided to explore the city and find the closest furniture store and supermarket that morning. 

“I’m going to ask Yue if she wants to come with us,” Sokka stated as he pulled out his phone. Yue lived in the dorms they offered on campus since she had no family in Republic City. The chief was obviously not going to let his princess daughter venture out on her own without protection so they arranged a guard for her from the Earth Kingdom. Once Yue found out the guard and her were the same age, she had the chief enroll her in the school as well since she would be following her around everywhere anyways. They were also roommates. 

S: _hey, you busy?_  
Y: _Just finishing up some winter assignments. What’s up?_  
Y: _Are you settling in?_  
S: _we need to go to a few stores today. do you want to come? pls say you can! i havent seen you in ages!_  
Y: _Yes! Suki will have to come too, you guys can finally meet!_  
S: _sounds good. meet us uptown in 40 minutes_

“She’s joining us along with her guard,” he states as he gets into the passenger seat of the car. Their car was shipped out to them and had arrived the night before. It was a 2018 Ford Expedition that really helped them move around in the snow while back home. 

“I’m glad Yue goes to the same school. At least I’ll know someone,” Katara sighed in relief from the backseat. As the date of their first day of school got closer, it became apparent to Katara that she would be the new student in the middle of the school year. However Yue being there helped ease her worry. She even offered Katara to spend the night in her dorm before the first day of school so she and her guard, Suki, could give her a tour before class.

“Yeah yeah, lucky you,” Sokka muttered. His anxieties haven’t gone away, they consumed him every night as the days got closer. He was going to attend the academy till he graduated which was nearly two years away. He couldn’t mess up or have a bad first impression. Thankfully uniform was required four days out of the week at the school so he didn’t have to worry about clothing yet until Friday of that week. 

It wasn’t as if Sokka cared of what people thought of him. He has always been proud to be from the water tribe, especially about being from the Southern Water Tribe but at times insecurity did crush him. He never had to worry about what anyone thought about him back at home because everyone easily accepted one another. However, he knew teenagers were cruel. He’s seen it happen in movies and shows. He’d even watched Gossip Bender, a tv show where children of Ba Sing Se’s Upper Ring elite attend a fancy prep school. There had been a few episodes where the Upper Ring children made fun of their classmates from the Lower Ring who attended the same school on scholarship. The powerful girls always reminded them that they were less and had no bending.

So yes, Sokka was fearful of what they would think of him and the fact that he was a non-bender from the Southern Water Tribe. _I have to try to succeed… by any means necessary._  


They arrived at the furniture after getting lost a few times and he saw Yue, with someone who appeared to be her guard, standing in front of the store. “Yue!” Sokka shouted and jumped out of the car while his dad was still parking. 

“Never ever do that again!” his dad shouted in anger. Of course Sokka paid no mind and ran to Yue. “Sokka!” They both embraced, hugging each other tightly. After several minutes, they parted away and took each other in. Yue looked exactly the same. Same beautiful white hair styled in a braid and was even wearing traditional water tribe blue clothing. The girl beside her, her guard, was wearing face paint and a deep green robe. He felt a little intimidated looking at her and could see why she was assigned as Yue’s guard.

Katara and Hakoda came over and exchanged greetings as well. “This is Suki! She’s a Kyoshi Warrior and was assigned to protect me. She’s also a close friend,” Yue says with a smile. Suki smiled and bowed to Hakoda. 

“To make this easier and faster, we should split up. Sokka, why don’t you, Yue, and Suki go to the supermarket nearby and get some stuff that we’ll need for the house,” Hakoda said. They agreed and parted ways.

“I think the theme of the house should be blues and browns,” Katara said as they walked away, pulling out her list. She had a checklist of the main essentials they’d need for the home such as a dining table and chairs, and a couch. 

“So Sokka, Yue says you’re attending Yue Bay Boys Academy,” Suki said while they walked down the block. It was a nice day out and this part of the city seemed calm. A few people sat in the outdoor dining provided by the restaurants while others were window shopping. 

“I am. I’m kinda nervous if I’m being honest,” he sighed. Yue smiles in sympathy beside him and patted his arm. “You’ll be fine! The school will love you,” she reassures. 

“Is there anything you guys think I should know about the school? Anything you’ve heard?” he questioned. He’ll need all the information he can get. 

“Well, you know it’s full of boys from influential families. We know of one person in particular who attends that might interest you,” Suki said. 

“Really, who?”

“Fire Lord Ozai’s son,” she stated with a grimace. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Sokka groaned. Although not much is known about the prince, he just knows he’s probably stuck up and an asshole. “We don’t know much about him but if he’s anything like his sister, I’m sure he’ll be a nightmare,” Suki rolls her eyes. _Oh he’s definitely an asshole then._

“What’s she like?”

“She and her group of friends terrorize anyone they feel like bothering. She’s cruel with words and sometimes she uses her firebending to get students to do what she says. Not that she has to, they all do what she says anyways since she’s a princess but she still uses her bending to strike double the fear,” Suki says with a clenched fist.

“Please tell me she’s older and will be graduating soon,” Sokka says, fearing for Katara. He knew Katara can defend herself but based on ranks of power, she can’t exactly do anything to the princess. 

“She’s a freshman,” they state in a wince. 

“You’re telling me she’s caused all this fear in just a semester,” he shrieks. The girls nod. “But don’t you worry, there’s not much she can do in a classroom while teachers are watching. We’ll be with Katara during breaks and lunches and make sure she is out of Princess Azula’s way.” _So that’s her name._ He has yet to know Prince Jerk’s name. _Zack? Zeke?_

He smiled gratefully at them, finally reaching the store. They grab essentials such as toilet paper, extra toothpaste since they only brought one tube with them, shampoo and conditioner, and some utensils. 

After making their way around the store for another half hour, they tightly pack the things in the reusable bags Sokka brought ( _courtesy of Katara_ ) and made their way back to the furniture store. Sokka runs inside and finds their dad at the register setting up a date for delivery. He hands Sokka the car keys and they pack all the stuff in the trunk, Katara coming out to help and chat.

They all pile into the car, Suki and Yue sitting in the back with Katara, while they wait for their dad to finish. 

“What teacher do you have for homeroom?” Suki asks Katara. “Ms. Hama,” she replies. 

“Oh you’ll love her. She’s originally from the Southern Water Tribe actually but moved out here when she was a teenager,” Yue states in excitement. Katara beams in joy.

“See, it’s like a little piece of home every school morning,” Sokka says with a smile. 

They talk for a little bit more before Hakoda finally appears with a receipt in hand. “Okay! Would you and Suki like a ride back to the school, Yue?” he asks as he starts the car.

“Yes, please! That way Katara can get a glimpse of the campus as well,” she answers. They drive for ten minutes, Yue telling him which roads to take before they finally arrive at a large gate where three security guards sit in a booth at the front of it. 

Yue rolls down the window and shows her school ID and a guard opens up the gate for them. “What do you do if there’s no guards to open the gate?” Sokka asked in interest as they made their way down a hill road. 

“Well a lot of important daughters and such attend the school, there’s guards always at the gates and other outside entrances. There’s also earthbender guards beneath ground in the tunnels in case an emergency happens on the actual campus,” Suki says. _Wow._

They drive by the main campus where all the buildings containing their classes are. Katara relaxes at the sight of it due to the buildings not appearing too large. She’ll easily navigate the school with Yue and Suki’s help.

They drive for a few minutes before stopping in front of an apartment looking building a block away from the main campus. Yue and Suki wave as they get off and make their way inside the building, using their student ID’s to scan themselves inside.

The trio makes their way back home, tired from shopping. Minus Sokka. He felt like he still had too much energy. 

“Since I did all the driving, I will now go take a nap. Katara, help your brother unpack,” Hakoda says with a laugh as they groan. He always gets himself out of helping them unpack. 

The siblings go back and forth taking things inside. Since the sun was still shining brightly, Sokka got the intense need to do something to work out all the energy stored in him. Locking the car door, he made his way to his room where he dug deep into his suitcases until he found a pair of workout shorts and a random t-shirt. He was going to go for a run. 

“I’ll be back soon, I’m going to run,” he shouted to Katara as he ran out the door. She nodded and began to put all the items purchased away.

Sokka started off with a slow pace as he ran down the road. The cheiffor was right, it was a quiet neighborhood. The houses, _(no, the mansions)_ , had nobody outside of them apart from an occasional person. He made it to the end of the neighborhood where he stopped to take a breath since he was planning on sprinting back home. 

As he stretched to touch his toes, he saw a shadow fall upon him. Thinking clouds blocked the sun, he paid no attention until he saw expensive dress shoes appear before him. He quickly straightened up, looking up into the hazel eyes of a man who was glaring right at him.

Sokka quickly scanned his eyes down and saw the man wearing a cleanly pressed suit with a small badge on the collar of his dress shirt. His eyes widened. It was a badge worn by all representatives. His dad had just received his the other day. With another quick look, he knew he was facing the Fire Nation’s representative if his top knot and the little flame on the badge was anything to go by.

“Who are you and what are you doing in front of my home,” he sneered. 

“I- I was out jogging, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to stop here,” Sokka stammered. While his sideburns weren’t at all intimidating, he was still facing an angry older man. One who can possibly firebend at that. “My name is Sokka. My dad just got elected to be the Southern Water Tribe’s representative,” he said, holding out his hand for a handshake, even if he didn’t want to shake this jerk's hand.

“Ah yes, I heard that the savages had arrived. Didn’t expect one in front of my house,” he said with a hiss as he walks away, not even shaking his hand. 

“Why don’t you run on home, I’d hate for your father to worry,” he said sarcastically, not looking back.

Sokka stood in shock, not expecting the stereotypical name. He glared at him until the guy made his way inside the home, disappearing from view. He couldn’t believe it. In all 16 years of his life, he never had someone call him such a derogatory term. The fact that it came from a representative made it much worse. This guy was an important member that was supposed to be helping change the world for the better. _It should be expected from someone from the Fire Nation,_ he thought bitterly.

He ran back home, anger now fueling his sprint. He made it back within 5 minutes and he stood by the door, gasping for air. He made his way inside once his breathing calmed down and saw Katara sitting on the floor since their furniture was getting delivered tomorrow. He knew he couldn’t tell her what just happened, it would only crush her. Plus she’d probably go to the man’s house and give him a piece of her mind.

“Hey, do you know who the Fire Nation’s representative is?” he asked casually as he grabbed a water bottle. She frowned at the plastic water bottle but answered anyway, “Representivate Zhao, why suddenly interested?”

“Just curious. Got to know all of dad’s coworkers, right?” he rushes out before running up the stairs to his room. He quickly pulled out his phone and looked him up.

**Representative Zhao (2009-ongoing)**  
**Fire Nation Navy veteran**  
_Representative Zhao had shown great strength while being an admiral for the nation’s navy. Close friend to the Fire Lord, he got assigned as the Fire Nation’s representative in 2009. He is currently still in office and has no plans to leave. His views are known to be more on the conservative side and-_

He stopped reading. This Zhao guy was bad news and there was no way he was going to tell his dad on what just occurred. His dad wanted them to be happy and if he heard of what just occurred, he’d certainly mention it once the representatives met up. He was not going to put that pressure on his dad during his first days in office. 

He sighed and grabbed his stuff to shower. _He’ll be fine._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Something I seriously struggle with is rereading my work. I'm sorry if there's any mistakes, please let me know if there is! I've never been a fan of double checking.


	4. Yue Bay Boys Academy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sokka's first day of school! Still no Zuko..  
> Also I forgot to mention that the title of this fic is from the song Vultures by Asking Alexandria. Give it a listen. It's a sad song. Hope you enjoy! A bit longer than the last chapters.  
> 

Their break quickly passes by with no more incidents. Sokka has yet to tell anyone about the encounter with Representative Zhao and he plans on keeping it that way. In fact, he hasn’t even thought much about that day, too focused on the upcoming first day of school. Of course, it’s not to say the incident didn’t affect him; it definitely did. He just has other priorities right now.

Like the fact that his first day of school was tomorrow. Unlike Katara, he knew no one at the school. There was no one to show him around and to spend lunch with. _Oh fuck… is he going to be like those kids in the movies that spend their lunch eating in the bathroom?_

“Son, you okay?” He forgot he was sitting at their new dining table, eating some takeout dinner with his family.

He shook himself away from his thoughts and smiled at his dad. “I’m fine, just thinking about tomorrow,” he mumbled. Katara nodded in understanding. Although she was going to have Yue and Suki with her for a good portion of the day, they weren’t going to be in her classes. She still had to make friends apart from them.

Hakoda looked at his kids and smiled. He knew they were nervous about attending a new school. Apart from it being a new school, it was a different environment for them. Different cultures and ideas were going to be presented to them. Deep down he knew this was the best thing he could’ve done for his children. Getting exposed to different cultures and people was a positive thing and he was sure it was going to leave a great impact. His kids, as well as him, were too secluded in their small village town. Everyone needed to see and explore the world, at least once.

They finished dinner and Katara left for her room to pack an overnight bag since she was staying with Yue and Suki at their dorm tonight. Sokka followed her to her room since he wasn’t going to see her in the morning.

“Are you ready for tomorrow?” he asked. She gave him a pointed as if to say _what do you think?_

“Okay, okay. I’m not either… I just keep thinking of all the scenarios that will probably not happen but I can’t help but to fear that it might happen,” he says. She sighs and puts her uniform neatly away. 

“I get it. I keep thinking the same thing. Gossip Bender scenes are non-stop playing in my mind,” she groans. Sokka laughs, “Glad I’m not the only one thinking of that dumb show.”

They both laugh as Katara continues packing. With a final zip, she throws the bag over her shoulder and grabs her backpack. They make their way downstairs to wait for their dad to finish washing the dishes so he can drop Katara off. 

“If you feel extremely nervous at any point tomorrow, please text me. Even if it’s just to complain about something,” he tells her. She agrees and tells him the same. Hakoda comes out of the kitchen and asks if she’s ready to go.

Sokka pulls his sister in for a quick hug. They let go after several moments and she heads out the door after her dad. He watches the car pull out of the driveway and down the street. He closes the door and sighs. _My turn to get ready._

He goes to the laundry room and pulls out his uniform. It was a fairly simple uniform: black pants, a white button down, and a choice between a dark navy blue blazer or sweater. Both the sweater and the blazer had the academy's emblem knitted on the front. His favorite part of the uniform was the fact that students could wear a tie with their nation’s color since students from all the nations attended. He pulled out his blue tie, excited to represent his tribe. They also had the choice between wearing black or white shoes. 

He set his uniform on the small couch he had gotten for his room, laying them out so they wouldn’t wrinkle. He grabbed his black and white converse, setting them beside the couch. He then grabbed his messenger bag to make sure he had all his supplies ready. Once he had everything ready, he went into the bathroom next door to brush his teeth. _He’d shower in the morning,_ he thought. He finished the rest of his night routine before going back into his room and changing into some basketball shorts to fall asleep in. 

He crawled into bed and pulled out his phone. He snapchatted a few of his old friends from back home and began watching some random videos. After a few hours, when it was nearly 11pm, his dad came into the room and wished him good night. 

As much as he tried to not sleep so he could avoid waking up tomorrow, he knew he would need it. With a sigh, he set an alarm for 6:30am before plugging in his phone to charge. He closed his eyes and fell into a restless sleep. 

-

He woke up to his alarm blaring loudly next to him. He whined and hid under his covers. He did not want to get up and face the reality that today was his first day of school. _Fuck._

The annoying alarm from his phone kept ringing, forcing him to get out from under his covers to turn it off. Looking at the time, he saw that it was now 6:33 in the morning. He dragged his hands over his face as he sat up, already dreading the day ahead of him. He forced himself to get up to go to the bathroom, grabbing a towel on his way out of the room. 

After using the restroom and brushed his teeth, he went to the shower and turned the temperature of the water to cold. As much as he hated it, he knew he would have to wake up his brain sooner or later. He took a deep breath before throwing himself under the shower head, letting the freezing cold water cascade down his still sleep-warm body. Shampoo and conditioner were used, followed by his cedarwood body wash. He got out of the shower and wrapped the towel around his waist. He moisturized his body before making his way to the room to change into his uniform. 

Looking in the mirror, he smiled confidently. _Boy, do I look good._ He put on his deodorant before rushing downstairs with his bag so he could eat a good breakfast. His homeroom began at 7:45am which was too early in his opinion. It was now 7:15am. He cursed. There was no way he was going to make it to school and have time to figure out where his classes were before homeroom began. Forget breakfast, he needed to go now. At that moment Hakoda appeared, still in his pajamas since he didn’t have to go into work till much later, and they rushed to the car. 

“Are you sure you don’t want to stop at a drive through and get a breakfast sandwich, Sokka?” he asked in worry. 

“I’m going to be late if we do that. Even if I wasn’t, I don’t think my stomach could hold anything right now,” he anxiously said. It was really starting to kick in now. He adjusted his tie while looking in the car's mirror.

They finally made it to a similar gate that was outside of Katara’s own school. He wasn’t surprised. They were sister ( _brother and sister?_ ) schools. It also had its own set of dorms. The guard let them in after seeing Hakoda’s representative ID since Sokka has yet to receive his school ID. 

They finally pulled up to what seemed to be the main building. Students in similar uniforms were bustling into the building, talking in groups or rushing alone to get inside and away from the cold. It was a fairly large building for having a rather small student population. It seemed to be three stories but he was unsure due to the structure of the building. 

“Well, this is it. I wish you luck, son. Please call or text me if you need anything,” his dad states in worry. Sokka tries to smile but it looks more like a grimace. “I will. Love you,” he said and got out of the car. He had 10 minutes to find the office, get his schedule, and find at least his homeroom. With a gulp, he followed where most of the students seemed to be heading in. He suspected that the office would be at the front. He was correct.

He made his way to the office and smiled at the office lady. She seemed fairly young, possibly middle 20’s. 

“Can I help you?” she asked without looking up from the computer. “Uh-yeah. I- I’m new here. I was wondering if this is where I get my schedule?” he nervously asked. She finally looked up and smiled. 

“Oh yes, we were told by Headmaster Ukano to expect you soon,” she says. She types on her computer and clicks a button, a page popping up on the printer. “Here is your schedule. Please come during lunch so we can take your picture for your student ID, there’s no time to do it now,” she states as she hands him his schedule. 

He reads his homeroom teachers name: **Mr. Piandao, room 205**

“Do you happen to know where room 205 is?” he asked in a hurry, seeing how he now had less than 5 minutes to arrive before the bell rang. 

“The first number of the room is basically the floor. So 205 is on the second floor, room 5,” she stated with a wave. He thanks her before making his way up the stairs since he knew the elevator would make him arrive late. For a moment he had forgotten it was an all boys private academy as he saw a bunch of male students standing around in the hallways.

He groaned as he realized he must have taken the wrong staircase since the first room number once he reached the top was 230. To top it off, there were three different hallways. He tried to hold in a frustrated scream and almost let out a real scream when he felt a hand land on his shoulder. 

“You lost?” a familiar voice asked.

He quickly turned around and was shocked. 

“Hahn?! You go here?” he screeched. 

Great. Hahn hated him for getting close to Yue, something he always tried to achieve but never did. He always made stupid comments whenever the two tribes would unite. It’s been almost three years since he’s last seen him though.  
“Duh, where else would I go?” Hahn said with an eye roll. “That doesn’t matter. Point is you look lost,” he says. Wait. _Is he being nice to me?_

“Uh- yeah. I am. I’m looking for room 205,” he says, a bit suspicious. “Ah, Piandao. We have the same homeroom teacher. Follow me,” he says. 

Sokka follows him down a hallway, surprised that Hahn is being helpful. If this were happening three years ago, he would have definitely left Sokka on his own. They enter a classroom just as the bell rings, singling the start of school. The students in the class look up and become intrigued that a new student is in their class. Hahn leaves him at the front and sits near the front where a bunch of other asshole looking guys are sitting.

“Hello, you must be Sokka,” a voice from the front of the room calls out to him. He quickly turns and sees a kind yet strict looking older man sitting on a chair behind a desk. He makes his way over and introduces himself.

“Yes, this is he,” he says while shaking the others hand. “Welcome to my homeroom, Sokka. Apart from being your homeroom teacher, I will also be teaching sophomore math which is algebra 2. You can take the empty seat on the left in the back,” he says pointing to the back corner of the room. 

He hears Hahn snort but with a quick glance, his face doesn’t betray that he let out that noise. _Weird._ The seat on the right of him is closest to the windows. He wished he had that seat instead. Since the rest of the seats in the class were full and Mr. Piandao directed him to a specific chair, Sokka assumed someone else usually sat there. _They probably slept in._

Looking at his schedule, he sees that the homeroom block is only 25 minutes long and ends at 8:10am. After this, he actually stays in the same classroom since he has math first thing in the morning. Although Sokka was quite good at math and enjoyed the subject, no one likes math early in the morning. 

He wondered if they already had assigned seats for math, or if Piandao was going to reassign seats for the start of a new semester. 

“Okay class, just as a reminder: today is A day. So you’ll only have your first three periods and your usual study period today, got it?” Piandao says. It seemed kind of self-explanatory on the schedule but he assumed most of these guys still aren’t out of their vacation brains.

Math, PE, and Drama was his schedule for today with lunch and a break in between. 

Eventually a bell rings signaling the end of homeroom and beginning of their first period. A majority of the students, including Hahn, filed out of the room going to their next class. Sokka gets up and goes up to Piandao to ask if there’s seating arrangements already. 

“I switch up the seating chart every semester, so don't worry,” he says as he pulls up a seating chart on the board. He spots his name and sits near the front next to a student named Teo who has yet to arrive. He scribbles on a piece of paper until he hears the sound of something rolling. 

“Hello, I’m Teo! Can you do me a favor and remove the chair from the desk?” he asks. He was in a wheelchair, backpack on his lap. 

“Oh yeah, sure.” He pulls out the chair and puts it against the wall and sits down first so Teo could have the outside desk. 

“I’m Sokka, I’m new” he says, even though Teo probably read his name already while looking at the seating chart. 

“Haha, I know. There’s only around 90 students in our grade. It’s easy to tell who leaves or comes in. How are you liking the school so far?” he questions as he takes out a notebook and pencils. 

“It’s not too bad. I mean, it’s only been thirty minutes or so,” he draws his eyes to Teo’s green tie. “Oh sweet, you’re from the Earth Kingdom. Do you miss home?”

“Sometimes I do but that’s what makes breaks much more enjoyable! You should totally come to my dorm sometime,” he says with a smile and grins wider when he sees Sokka’s tie.

“And you’re from the water tribe! If you don’t mind me asking, which part?” 

“Southern Water Tribe,” Sokka states proudly. “Wow! I think you’re the first person I’ve met from there! You’re definitely the only one in the school.”

Sokka was about to reply but Piandao drew the class’s attention to the front, ready to begin class. 

“Alright, class, we’re going to do some review of some topics from last semester the whole class period, just as a fresh reminder,” and begins handing out worksheets.

“Please work with your partners and try to figure it out yourselves before asking me for help. Sokka, there’s extra textbooks in the back.”

Teo and Sokka work together throughout the class and finish their worksheet quickly. They talk more about their homes and their class schedules. 

“This is mine,” Sokka says and shows Teo. 

**Monday/Wednesday**  
**Homeroom - 7:45am-8:15am with Mr. Piandao rm. 205**  
**Algebra 2 - 8:20am-9:45am with Mr. Piandao rm. 205**  
**Break - 9:45am-10:00am**  
**PE - 10:05am-11:30am with Mr. Pakku in Gym**  
**Lunch - 11:30am-12:15pm**  
**Art - 12:20am-1:45pm with Mr. Jeong Jeong in rm. 302**  
**Study Period - 1:50pm-3:15pm**  
**Tuesday/Thursday**  
**Homeroom - 7:45am-8:15am with Mr. Piandao rm. 205**  
**World History - 8:20am-9:45am with Mr. Fong rm. 311**  
**Break - 9:45am-10:00am**  
**AP Chemistry: 10:05am-11:30am with Mr. Bumi rm. 209**  
**Lunch - 11:30am-12:15pm**  
**AP English - 12:20am-1:45pm with Mrs. Song rm. 307**  
**Study Period - 1:50pm-3:15pm**  
**Friday**  
**Switch between A and B day each week; no homeroom and no study period**

“We have AP chemistry together as well,” he says. He goes on to explain how on Fridays, school starts at 8:20am since there’s no homeroom and ends at 1:45pm since there’s no study period. 

“Everyone has a different study period. Mine is right after this class actually. We just go on with our regular schedule on Fridays as if my study period isn’t in the middle of it. It’s complicated but they have the schedules down to a tea so nobody is mixed in and confused,” he states just as Piandao announces class is almost over. Since break is right after the class, they stroll together through the school so Teo can tell him where the cafeteria is and the gym. 

“Since I have a study period right after break, I don’t mind taking you to the gym and waiting for you so we can grab lunch after,” he states. Sokka agrees, glad he won’t spend lunch alone or in a bathroom like he feared. 

Study periods have no assigned classroom and students are allowed to venture anywhere on the campus to get some studying done minus outside the hallways where classrooms are in session. There’s also tutors available for the students in case they need help.

The bell rings and Sokka walks into the gym. The teacher introduces himself to Sokka as Mr. Pakku, giving him a form so he could order his PE uniform. He sits in the gym’s bleachers while the other students exercise. Unfortunately Hahn is in his class. The teacher has noticeable water tribe features and he assumes he’s from the northern water tribe. He should ask Yue. 

He secretly pulls out his phone and sees two texts from Katara and one from Yue.

_K: Good luck on your first day 8:13am_  
_K: So far so good 9:43am_

_Y: Good luck today! <3 8:03am _

PE ends, lunch begins. Teo and him first head out to the front office so Sokka could pick up his student ID. They then make their way outside to the large patio where several tables are set up, most occupied. They head to a table where a group of students are already sitting and eating. Teo introduces him to his group of friends consisting of a guy named Haru who's also a sophomore, a junior named Pipsqueak, and a freshman named the Duke. Looking at all their ties, he sees they’re all from the earth kingdom. They sat at a table bench outside since the day was nice and fresh.

20 minutes into lunch he hears a voice call out, “Sorry I’m late!” He turned around and was met with wind as someone practically flew to them. _Wait, he’s actually flying._

He gasps as a boy in an orange tie lands right beside him, looking at Sokka with interest. “Hello! Are you new? My name is Aang!” 

“Did you- how did- you flew!” Sokka shouted. Aang laughed and put his glider to rest against the table. “I’m an airbender!” 

“Wow… well I’m Sokka,” he says. The whole group converses and Sokka feels alright. He’s glad he met a group of friends that don’t seem driven by money. In fact, the Duke and Pipsqueak are there on scholarship for the school’s wrestling team. 

“You should totally join a club or team, Sokka!” 

“I’ll think about it,” he replied. _It wouldn’t be a bad idea._

He was showing his new friends so many videos and pictures from back home that his phone died by the end of lunch. Lunch ends and he heads to art class with Aang, who’s in his class. So far he knows somebody for all his classes except for his english and history class. 

Art passes by with a breeze and he heads off to find a spot for his study period. Since he doesn’t have homework due and a dead phone, he starts looking at the brochures of the clubs and sports the school offers. 

After reading through all the titles, he decided to look through the three that caught his attention: hockey, sword mastering, and track and field. Opening the hockey pamphlet, he read that the season for hockey already started and was coming to an end soon. However, both the sword mastering class and track and field sport were beginning in a few weeks. 

He put the two pamphlets away in his bag and waited for the bell to ring. Once the powerful bell rang throughout the building, he grabbed his messenger bag and made his way to the front door. He was one of the first out since he was near the office during his study period. He quickly spotted his dad and opened the passenger door expecting to see Katara in the back.

“Where’s Katara?” he asked once he realized it was just him and his dad. They drove out of the campus and unto the main road. 

“She said she was going to stay with Yue and Suki a little longer and to pick her up before dinner,” he replied. They spoke about his first day and all the new friends he met. 

“I honestly think I’m going to like school. I don’t know why I was so worried,” he laughed. They arrived home and Sokka went up to his room so he could put his phone to charge. After several minutes, his phone’s power finally turned on and was suddenly flooded with several texts from Yue. 

_Y: Just had lunch with Katara and Suki 12:22pm_  
_Y: Sokka please call me as soon as you can 1:33pm_  
_Y: Sokka, it has to do with Katara 1:46pm_  
_Y: There was an incident 2:11pm_

He quickly called her, worried for his sister. Why did he let his phone die?

It rang for a few seconds before Yue’s worried voice rang through, “ _Sokka! Did your phone die?”_

He disregarded her question and immediately began asking about Katara. “ _She’s fine, just a little shaken and upset. She didn’t want your dad to see her upset on her first day so she decided to stay with Suki and I for a little bit longer_ ,” she states.

“What happened? What was the incident?” he loudly whispers so his dad won’t hear.

“ _She met Azula.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise Zuko will appear in the next chapter! Also:  
> https://pin.it/68DF1uA < An idea of how the uniforms look like! Sokka wears a blazer with the same shade as the sweater though! The uniform on the left is what I had in mind. Katara wears the same uniform as the girl on the left picture but with choice of black pants or black skirt. They have the same tie system.  
> I don't know how to add links in the text :(


	5. Fire Nation Royalty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What you've all been waiting for... some Zuko. Also the beginning of the chapter will be in Katara's third person just to get a glimpse of what exactly occurred. Then it will jump back to Sokka at the - point.  
> Also fyi, even though the war technically never happened during their time period, Iroh's son is not alive. Ozai still wanted to be fire lord and therefore Azulon is also dead and Ursa gone.

The first half of Katara’s first day went really well. She was shown around by Yue and Suki and taken right to her homeroom after with no incidents. She asked a girl from her homeroom, named Jin, for some guidance to her classes. Luckily they had english together and spoke all of class about their lives instead of talking about the text like they were supposed to. 

She learned that Jin’s parents worked at a tea shop in Ba Sing Se but that the owner moved to Republic City last year. However, he loved his old employees and knew that no one could learn how to master the art of tea like how he taught them so he offered to move them to Republic City. Of course they accepted. The owner pulled a few strings with their headmaster and the school board which allowed Jin to attend the school this year on scholarship. 

The bell rang indicating break was next. Yue and Suki were outside the classroom when she stepped out. She waved bye to Jin, who went over to her friends, promising to introduce her to them later. Katara told Yue and Suki that everything was going good and that she even considered the girl she walked out with a potential friend. 

“We’re so happy for you,” Yue smiled, a bit relieved. Suki had scanned her homeroom when they dropped her off and was glad to not see Azula or her friends in there. She also watched all the students pile out of Katara’s english class and was once again glad they weren't in there either. After break they dropped Katara off in her geometry class, repeating the scanning process. After class, Katara spent lunch with Jin and unbeknownst to her, was being watched. 

Jin and Katara went off to their PE class which they thankfully had together. Unfortunately, it had to be right after lunch. Katara and Jin were in such deep conversation the whole class that she didn’t even notice a specific name being called out during attendance. She was waiting for Jin to finish changing and freshening up in the locker room when the incident happened. 

“Well, well who do we have here?” she heard a voice call out. She turned to find three girls standing at the end of the locker room aisle. They were cornering them in, their full attention on Katara. The locker room was quiet. All the other girls in the locker room must have already filed out. The three girls walked closer and Katara's eyes were focused on their matching red ties. _Fire nation._

Jin stiffened, fear evident on her face for a split second before morphing into anger. “Leave her alone, she hasn’t done anything.”

The mood of the girl in the middle went from cocky to annoyed. It seemed as if she was the leader of this trio. “Do you really think a charity case like you could tell me what to do?” she huffed. “Now stay silent or else,” the girl glares before returning her gaze on Katara. 

“You’re new. Also from the water tribe, I see. We don’t see much of you savages around here,” she stated while looking at her nails as if she was discussing seeing a wild animal in nature. 

Katara gasped and clenched her fists in anger, ready to strike. “Excuse me?!” She wished she brought her water pouch with her but it was in her locker. She didn't think she'd need it.

“Ah see, quick to react with anger. Can’t even have a dignified conversation, can you?” she rolls her eyes. “I know your father has just recently become representative and that is the reason why you’re here. It’s a shame, really, on what a foolish daughter he raised.”

Katara couldn’t hear any more of this and lunged but before her fist could make contact, she was jabbed hard on her shoulder making her arm weak and useless. She cried out as another jab went to both sides of her hips, making her fall to her knees. She looked up just as the girl with the long braid went back to the other girl’s side.

“Princess Azula, please! Leave her alone,” she heard Jin cry out as she rushed to Katara’s side. Katara sharply inhaled. _Azula… this was the princess?_ Azula looked bored as she stared down at Katara. That’s when she saw the gold headpiece glint from the reflection of the light. _How did she just notice it?_

“We’ll leave just this once. But take this as a warning, peasant, and perhaps next time tell your friend that there’s someone in charge of this school and it's me. Next time I won’t be so nice,” smirked before she turned around and left, her two friends following after her without so much of a glance back.

“Oh Katara… I’m so sorry,” Jin said. “Please, get my phone and text my friend Yue,” Katara whispered. She was scared. She couldn’t move her body apart from the single arm that was left untouched. 

After several minutes, Suki and Yue came running in and gasped when they saw Katara on the floor. “Katara, are you okay?!” Suki pulled Katara’s body up to lay down on the bench in the middle of the aisle. Jin began explaining the incident to them but Katara wasn’t listening. She was shocked and wondered if this numb feeling throughout her body would go away. 

“Katara? Katara.” She looked up. “Listen, the girl who did this is named Ty Lee. She’s basically what Suki is to me, a body guard and childhood friend. She did this because you were going to attack Azula but I know you didn’t know who she was, I’m sorry. I should have described how she looked or something,” Yue said sadly. She was disappointed in herself for not being able to protect Katara, something she promised Sokka she would do. She had sent Sokka a quick text after she received Jin’s message from Katara’s phone but she still hasn’t gotten a reply. She quickly sent another before going back to Katara. 

“So this won’t be permanent right?” she asked them. “No, no. You’ll soon get feeling back,” Suki promised. By now her PE period had ended. Jin said goodbye to Katara as she left for her next class. Thankfully there was no PE class after Katara’s so they were alone in the locker room. 

“I’m going to go tell a teacher or something,” Suki said. Katara’s eyes widened and grabbed her by the sleeve with the hand that could still move. 

“Please don’t! Really, it was nothing.. plus I really don’t want my dad to worry,” Katara exclaimed. Suki and Yue shared a look before agreeing. “At least let me tell the teacher whose class you're supposed to be in now that you’re sick,” she reasoned. Katara agreed. 

As Suki left, Yue looked at Katara with a look of guilt. “Please don’t blame yourself, Yue! It was really not your fault. How were you supposed to know they had PE with me?” 

“I know, I know but I’m still so upset this happened on your first day!” she said with the shake of her head. “Also… I know you don’t want your dad to find out but I had to text Sokka. He hasn’t responded yet so I’m assuming he’s busy or his phone is dead.” She sent one final text. 

Katara sighed. She moved and felt relieved when she could move the rest of her limbs. “I guess it’s okay for him to know,” she said. “I just hope he doesn’t tell my dad.”  
-  
When his dad told Sokka he was leaving to pick up Katara, he quickly asked if could go with him. He gave him a weird look but shrugged. They got into the car, Sokka anxious to see his sister. When they pulled up outside the dorms, Sokka said there was no need to text Katara to come out because he really wanted to see Yue and Suki’s room.

“Okay but hurry up. I still have to make dinner,” his dad shouts as he puts the car in park.

He let Yue know he was outside and she sent Suki to go open the door for him so he could enter the building. It was nearly six now, the sun now setting. The sunset reflected nicely onto the building, it’s reflection on the windows but he quickly set his focus back on his sister. Suki opened the door and they took the elevator up to the fourth floor. 

Their dorm room was big. Well it wasn't just a single room. Apparently rather than rooms, the students basically got apartments. They had a small kitchen, a living room, and two rooms with their own bathrooms. _They even had their own laundry machines!_ Katara was currently sitting on their couch, knees pulled up to her chest. She smiled softly at Sokka as if to show she was okay but he still ran to her, pulling her into a tight hug. Although Yue explained she was more shaken up than anything, the anxiety didn’t leave his body till he saw his sister in one piece right in front of him. And she was fine cause she pushed him away after a few minutes with an affectionate eye roll. 

“Are you okay?” he asked. She exhales but nods.

“It didn’t hurt. Azula’s friend or whatever just paralyzed me. It was scary,” she replies after a few moments of silence. She suddenly stood up, pacing back and forth while shaking her head in thought. It was as if she wanted to say something but didn’t know how to say it.

“Spit it out, I know you want to say something.”

“She called us savages,” she finally spit out. Sokka stiffened. Representative Zhao called them that as well, something he hid from Katara to protect her from the cruel world that they never experienced before. Yet here she was telling him someone had called her that as well. Not just at her but at her whole family, her whole tribe. He remembered the article he read the other week that talked about Zhao. _Close friend to the Fire Lord._

Of course the princess was going to be talking about them in that way. She was the Fire Lord’s daughter. The Fire Lord was close friends with Representative Zhao who also spoke this way. The Fire Lord and everyone he associates himself with probably all have these prejudiced views. Including the prince who he has yet to meet. _And the prince better hope he never meets me._

“She even called the girl who was helping me a charity case and a peasant. Then she called me foolish,” she added. Sokka rubbed his eyes, groaning. He knows that when his sister feels like something that was said or done was unjustifiable, she’ll try to avenge. 

“Katara, please don’t purposefully go up to Azula. I know you’re upset by what she’s said but it’s really not worth your being,” he declares. She crosses her arms while glaring at him as if _he’s_ the bad guy.

“And why not? This is probably why she’s gone this whole time without any repercussions! No one has probably stood up to her,” she shouts. 

“Katara, please listen to Sokka. Two girls did try to stand up against her but within a week, they were kicked out of the school,” Yue utters. “She’s a princess from the Fire Nation, she has so much power and influence.”

“And unfortunately, the Fire Nation has influenced a lot of powerful figures from the Earth Kingdom including the Earth Kingdom’s two representatives! She has a lot more power than we think,” Suki reveals. 

Sokka exhales. He knows that Representative Zhao is corrupt but two more representatives plus who knows how many other powerful people in the Earth Kingdom? _Katara can’t risk their dad’s spot._

“Katara, just don’t. That’s three corrupt representatives working with dad. They can easily kick him out and replace him,” he sighs. “Nothing will really get done and change within the world if dad isn’t on the council.”

She sighs in defeat but nods. She would do anything for her dad. Eventually they leave Yue and Suki’s dorm and go home. They both talk more about their day with their dad at dinner, Katara leaving the bad parts out. 

Before Sokka knows it, it’s 11pm and he goes to bed praying he doesn’t bump into the prince tomorrow. He decides that even if he does, he will not react with violence. _Words hurt too,_ he decides.  
-  
Katara was dropped off at school first since she was meeting with Yue and Suki again. Sokka entered his homeroom with a yawn. He still wasn’t used to waking up before 7am. Sitting at his desk, he noticed the desk beside him was once again empty. He was starting to doubt anyone really sat there but he remembered Hahn’s snort yesterday. Someone definitely sat there, someone who Hahn knew Sokka would have a rough time with. Homeroom continued and his partner was still absent. Mr. Piandao didn’t take attendance by calling out names since he knew everyone’s name by now so he had no way to find out what his partner’s name was. 

He walked up the stairs towards his history class. He came early since he didn’t know what this teacher's seating arrangement would be. Mr. Fong, the world history teacher, told Sokka to sit in the front. After a few minutes, Haru walked into the room and waved at him. 

“Looks like we’re partners,” he says. Sokka felt the anxiety ease. At least he knew someone in this class. Mr. Fong began to take attendance alphabetically by first name. 

He went down the list, calling Sokka’s name. He continued down the last. 

“Zu-”

The doors slammed open. 

“I’m here,” a raspy voice said. Sokka looked up and felt his body go cold. A pale boy stood at the door, dark black hair falling messily around his face. Despite this, there was this regal air surrounding him. _That has to be him._

“Ah, Prince Zuko. Nice of you to be joining us,” Mr. Fong said sarcastically. The prince ignored him and made his way to the back of the room. 

“Well now that everyone’s here, we’re going to watch a documentary on how modern technology first got introduced and the impact it left to those people,” the teacher went on to say before connecting his laptop to the screen. He should’ve asked yesterday during lunch if any of them shared a class with the prince. Throughout the whole class, Sokka resisted the urge to turn around. 

_The prince was right behind him._ He looked at the others nearest to him but none of them batted an eye, focused on the documentary. He knew he shouldn’t be nervous, the teacher was in the room. Plus who’s to say that the prince spotted him or even knew who he was. _Hopefully Azula didn’t tell him anything._ He does not want any more incidents with hateful, self-observed Fire Nation citizens. No, now he was more angry than nervous. 

Class quickly ended after the documentary and Sokka walked with Haru to join the rest of their friends. He so badly wanted to talk about the prince but he knew 15 minutes was not enough time to talk about something so trivial. After break he and Teo went to AP chemistry, thankfully sitting together. He was honestly surprised to see AP chemistry on his schedule rather than regular chemistry since he did come in the middle of the year. 

The teacher went over some review on the board before giving them worksheets. He also handed Sokka a textbook while eating a rock candy. _Strange._ Due to the worksheets being difficult, all his thoughts on the prince completely disappeared. Teo and him worked hard but finished before the bell rang for lunch. 

The lunch was amazing and there were so many different varieties available. There was 5 sections in the large cafeteria offering the four nation’s different food styles plus the United Republic's style as well which was a mix of all 4. Sokka went with Teo to the Earth Kingdom's food section to try one of Teo’s favorite meals: roast duck with veggies on the side. The fact that this school offered roast duck for lunch just shows its wealth. 

Sokka took off his blazer, laying it down on his lap. They met up with the rest of the crew at the same bench from yesterday. Yesterday they talked about Sokka’s home and today he wanted to learn more about their homes. Lunch went smoothly and Sokka walked alone to his AP English class a few minutes before lunch was over. He was once again surprised that they let him in AP but whatever.

Once he arrived and entered the room, he inwardly screamed as he saw the prince sitting in the back of the room reading a book. He didn’t seem to notice Sokka walk in and kept reading. That’s when Sokka noticed the large scar over his left eye stretching upwards. _He probably did that to himself trying to be cocky with a fire trick… meaning he’s a fire bender._

Sokka huffed and went to stand beside the desk waiting for the teacher to show up. A kind looking lady wearing a hanbok entered the room after a few minutes. She immediately noticed him and signaled him to wait one minute before making her way to the prince carrying a book with her. 

Sokka watched as they conversed quietly for a minute before the prince said something quite loudly, turning around and not looking at his teacher. Sokka felt himself fill up with rage again. _He’s rude to the teachers?_ If he was rude to the teachers there’s no way he wasn’t an asshole to the students. 

The teacher smiled softly at him before making her way to the front where Sokka was. By then a few students had begun piling in, all avoiding the prince’s space. 

“Hello, you must be Sokka,” a soft voice pulled his attention back. He smiled, wanting her to see a kind face after she had just dealt with the jerk. She gave him the same book that she gave Zuko and indicated that it was a new book they were beginning in class today. She also gave him other important papers he would need for the course. 

“Hm, there seems to be an empty seat besides Zuko. He’s the one in the back corner,” she states. He hesitates. There was really no other empty seat? Thankfully, from what he saw from the front of the room, there were two empty seats so he reluctantly made his way to the back. He sat down, leaving the empty seat between them. He heard the prince huff and Sokka quickly looked at him, narrowing his eyes but not saying anything. 

However, the prince was doing a good job at ignoring his stare. With a roll of his eyes, Sokka stared back at the front of the room. He kept tapping his pencil against the desk as Mrs. Song began to talk about things he wasn’t necessarily interested in. He felt the prince shift to glare at him but now it was Sokka’s turn to pay him no attention. In fact, he began tapping his pencil louder. He saw the jerk clench his fists on top of his desk. He then noticed his knuckles on his right hand bruised. Sokka scoffed. _Did he get in a fight with another student already in the first week?_ Seeing the bruises did make him stop his tapping though. He did not want any physical fights right now.

“Okay guys, so we are starting a new book this semester! I handed them out in class when you walked in but if you haven’t gotten yours, please come to the front and pick one up,” Mrs. Song says.

“Please read the first 5 pages then write an analysis on the introduction,” she continues before she sits back down behind her desk. Silence filled the classroom as they all began to read. The only sounds being the flipping of pages and the occasional yawn. 

The book was actually interesting. It was called _No War_ and published by an anonymous writer from Ba Sing Se. Sokka then took out a piece of binder paper and began writing his analysis, the jerk already on that step from what he saw out of the corner of his eye. 

The period ended and Mrs. Song made everyone pass their analysis paper to the front of the room before dismissing them. The first to leave being the prince but not without him purposely bumping into Sokka’s desk. Sokka inhaled but let it go. He then wished Mrs. Song a good day before exploring the school to try and find a comfortable spot for his study period. He wanted to be near the front doors though so he could leave without getting swarmed by all the students. 

He found a quiet hallway on the first floor, thankfully not a hallway with active classrooms in it. He turned the corner and was happy to find a little sitting area with comfortable looking couches but just as fast as his happiness appeared, it disappeared. _Of course he was sitting here._ The boy looked up from his book and his eyes hardened once they saw Sokka.

“Are you following me or something?” 

Sokka made a face. “As if, I was just leaving once I saw you here,” he snarked back. The prince was wearing the soft sweaters the school offered and the deep red Fire Nation tie. He was surprisingly wearing a pair of white vans. He was expecting him to wear dress shoes or something considering his title as prince. 

“Yeah, whatever,” he said and went back to reading. _Oh that does it._ Just to piss him off, he sat down on one of the couches ignoring the hard stare he was receiving. He was a bit surprised when he heard a book slam shut and footsteps making his way to him.

“Are you fucking kidding me? Leave,” the asshole spat out. Sokka’s anger took over but made sure not to let it out physically. 

“Listen, you might look down on us all because you think you’re oh so powerful or whatever but you can’t order me around. In fact, I’m only leaving because you piss me off,” Sokka said standing up and grabbing his bag. 

“The truth is nobody gives a shit about you, I’m sure. If they do, it’s out of fear. Also tell your fucking sister to stop messing around with my family,” Sokka shouts before leaving the shocked prince behind. He hears soft footsteps running after him, grabbing him by the shoulder and turning him around. 

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, water tribe,” he shouted. Up close, Sokka realized the prince was shorter and much smaller than he imagined. _Of course, Most likely because he’s never had to do any manual labor unlike Sokka._

“Don’t touch me,” he shouted back. Zuko opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted by a tall man standing at the entrance of the hallway. 

“What is going on here?” he shouts, glaring at the two boys. 

Zuko immediately stiffened and looked down at his shoes. _Who is this?_

The man was wearing a nice suit and had his hair in a top knot. _Wait. Top knot. Why why why why… why does he keep getting into situations with fire nation men._ He walked over to them with a stern look on his face. He stopped once he saw Sokka and surprisingly his face calmed down a little. 

“Ah, Sokka from the Water Tribe. I have yet to introduce myself. I’m Headmaster Ukano,” he said while holding out his hand. Sokka hesitantly shook it, afraid he was still in trouble. “I hope you are enjoying your time here so far,” he continued. 

“However, you boys were causing a ruckus out here with your shouts,” he said. “Prince Zuko, I expected better from you. I’m going to have to make a phone call to your father. It hasn't even been a week since school began,” he said disappointedly. Zuko stiffened even more but nodded.

“Of course, sir. Whatever you think is best,” he states monotone. 

_Is he scared of the headmaster?_ Sokka saves this information for later. It's good to know that there's someone the prince will listen to if he ever causes any harm upon Sokka or his new friends. It seems also as if the headmaster is close friends with the Fire Lord.

The headmaster shakes his head at him clearly displeased before nodding once at Sokka. “Well I shall go to my office now. Good day Sokka, Prince Zuko.” He then walked into the elevator that was in the hallway.

Before Sokka could say anything, the prince turned to him once more. “Leave me the fuck alone or else there will be problems,” he hisses before he stomps back in the direction of the sitting space. Sokka scoffed but decided to listen, even if it's just for now. 

He was right though. The prince was just as he imagined: an asshole who thinks he’s better than everyone. He’d leave him alone for now but if his sister messes with Katara again, nothing was stopping him. Prince or not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omg I never realized how nerve wrecking it is writing what I would think characters would say. Anyways hope you enjoyed this chapter! On a google doc it was almost 9 pages yet it seems so short lmao.  
> Next chapter we're taking a look into our prince's mind.


	6. Where To Turn

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be a sad chapter.. Zuko's POV.  
> TW:  
> Child abuse, domestic abuse, violence

He’s been dreading this day for months. While the other students are dreaming about finally getting away from school for two weeks, it’s been his nightmare. These last few days had been filled with students around him talking about their winter vacation plans and about finally going home. It left an ache in his chest. _He wished he was excited to go home too._

Maybe he can come up with an excuse to tell his guardian, tell him he has to stay in Republic City for a club or to prepare for the upcoming semester. 

**No.** He should not be thinking of excuses. He has to get rid of these thoughts. _How can he be such a terrible son and not want to see his own father?_

The school bell rang, signalling the end of school and the end of his first semester as a sophomore. Since it is a Friday, there is no study period. He let out a sigh and slowly began to put away his things as everyone else practically shoved their stuff away in a hurry. They all joined their friends and laughed as they exited the classroom, explaining their travel plans. Soon the classroom is empty minus Zuko and Mrs. Song. 

“Prince Zuko, are you alright?” He looks up and sees Mrs. Song staring at him with a worried expression across her face. He nods and grabs his bag. He can’t raise any suspicion. 

“I’ll see you next semester, ma’am,” he whispers and leaves the room. He decides to take the stairs, only because it is better for his health than taking the elevator, not because he is trying to take as long as possible. After three flights of stairs, he finally reaches the first floor. Less than 200 steps to the front door of the building. He sighs again and tightens his hold on the strap of his messenger bag as he continues his walk out. 

“Hey asshole, excited to see daddy fire lord?” he hears a voice call out, followed by laughter. He took a deep breath to try and keep his anger down before looking ahead. Hahn and his hockey friends are standing in a group near the front doors. 

“Don’t talk about my father. You disrespect his title by it coming out of your filthy mouth,” Zuko replies. Hahn bristled in anger at having gotten called filthy. 

“Now I’m leaving. I don’t have the time to be spending it with you commoners. I have an actual duty I must attend to,” and he exits the school, the doors swinging shut behind him. Deep down he always felt guilty whenever he used certain phrases to make himself appear better than others. He knew he wasn't any better than them. In fact he is sure his father looked at him with the same stare of disgust. 

But of course no one can know. He is the good, perfect prince to the public eye. The perfect son. Though he knows what his father truly thinks of him and it is none of those positive words. 

_Weak. Useless. Disappointment. Lucky to be born._

Despite all this, despite how much he dreads going home… he wants to go back home. The palace is _his_ home. Even if most times it did not feel like home, it was somewhere where he could hide away unlike at school where everyone watched his every move. Waiting for the perfect prince to mess up. It was done subtly, no one actually daring to fully stare at him. The only ones who dare are the stupid hockey team.

He walks up to the black bullet-and-element proof SUV parked at the entrance of the school. He opens the door and sits in the back seat without any greetings. His chauffeur nods at him and drives away towards his current place of residence. He refuses to call _that_ place home. 

They pass the small gated community’s gate and drive down the long road till they finally arrive outside the house. Zuko got off and walked towards the front door while the chauffeur stayed parked outside since he was taking him to the airport in a little bit after they picked up Azula. 

He is about to go hide in his room till it is time for him to leave but a voice stops him. “You’re late, Prince Zuko.” He gulps and realizes his guardian’s office door is open and he’s home. 

“Get in here now.”

He drags his feet to sit at the chair in front of the desk, head down. He hears the man get up from behind the desk to stand directly in front of him. Then a hand reaches out and yanks his hair, making Zuko have direct eye contact with his guardian. 

“I’m sorry, representative Zhao,” he whispers. Zhao sneers at him before letting go, shaking his head in annoyance. 

“You do this every single time you have to return to the Fire Nation. Are you trying to delay your return? Are you actively trying to disobey the Fire Lord?” he says in a low, threatening voice. 

“O-of course not! It is an honor to go to the Fire Nation,” Zuko shakes his head quickly. He is now glad he never brought up any excuses as to why he should stay here instead of going home. It would have not ended well. Of course it would be seen as an act of disobedience. 

“Well hurry and grab your luggage, the princess is waiting for us,” Zhao states and Zuko quickly walks out of the room. Azula is lucky. When she moved to Republic City to attend school a few months ago, Ozai allowed her to stay in the dorms rather than live with him and Zhao. 

_”I trust you more than your imbecile brother,”_ he had said.

The Fire Lord felt as if Zuko couldn’t be without supervision. In fact he is always supervised, everywhere he goes. At school, the headmaster kept an eye on him to make sure he didn’t do anything that could make the Fire Lord look bad. At the house, Zhao never cared to look after him but he made sure to discipline him. The headmaster reported to him and his father any mistakes Zuko had made while at school, discipline always approved by his father. Whenever he left the house, the chauffeur kept tabs on every place he drove him to and if he was seen with anyone else. When we went back home to the Fire Nation, the servants watched his every move and waited for him to commit an error so they could report it to the Fire Lord just so they could be in his good graces. 

There was also Jet. Jet was a boy he had met during his first successful sneak out back in his freshman year. At first he didn’t recognize who Zuko was and Zuko was not going to tell him. To Jet, he was just Lee. He finally had the chance to be the person he always wanted to be but too scared to show. Jet introduced Zuko to many things such as smoking, stealing, and vandalizing. He began to trust Jet and told him stories about his life during their nightly meeting sessions, things he never told anyone. He also told Jet he was gay and was happy, for the first time in a long time, when Jet confessed he liked him. 

They began dating after his first semester of freshman year. His relationship with Jet felt good. Though sometimes it hurt. However, he had no other relationship to compare it to apart from his own parent’s relationship. He remembered his father treating his mother in a similar way when he was younger and his mother not leaving him till the night she vanished, meaning this was probably okay. So sure Jet was possessive and often lashed out at him in anger but Zuko loved him and he knew Jet had felt the same way. 

Jet often told him he was only mean to him because he cared for Zuko. The bruises he left on Zuko’s body was a reminder for Zuko to remember that Jet loved him enough to hurt him when he felt like Zuko wasn’t obeying him.

 _Obeying._ Zuko was raised his whole life to do that simple task and it seemed like he was always messing up. No matter how hard he tried, for Jet or his father, it always ended with pain. But he loved them both and would continue to try.

However all good things must come to an end. Jet showed up to their meeting spot one night, shaking in anger. In his hand he had a picture pulled up on his phone of Zuko during his father’s coronation. 

Zuko had been beaten black and blue that night. What hurt more was his heart at the words Jet had screamed at him. 

_“I never loved you. I just wanted to use you but now… I could really use you.”_

Though he had very clearly broken up with him that night, Jet still wanted him around. He had threatened that he would tell anyone who would listen that the crowned prince was nothing more than a cock sucker who secretly hated going home. In exchange for his silence, he wanted Zuko’s company and occasionally some money. Zuko had accepted. Deep down, he still felt love for Jet and craved being near him. 

It’s been a year since that night and Zuko still sees Jet a few nights a week. Despite being a year older and aware of Jet’s abusive behavior, he wants to be near him. He just wants to feel love, even if it was just for a few minutes. Even if the loving touches turned into slaps within seconds. He didn’t have to put up the perfect prince act with Jet. Although he wasn’t his true self while with him, it was better than trying to live up to everyone’s expectations. Jet knew he was a fuck up already, just like his father knew it too. 

With all this weighing on him, it made Zuko very wary of others and caused him to close himself off. He vowed to never get close to anyone else because others only seemed to bring pain into his life. There seemed to be a pattern in Zuko’s life where it appeared as if every individual that entered caused some form of pain, whether physical or emotional. Even the ones who never laid a hand on him caused him suffering. His mother disappeared, his uncle left. He truly has no one apart from his father and Jet. 

__Maybe he was the one doing something wrong._ _

He shook himself out of all those thoughts and quickly grabbed his luggage and pulled it downstairs and put it besides Zhao’s own luggage. The chauffeur came in and carried it to the car, Zhao and Zuko following behind so they could get into the car. Zhao sat at the front and began making business calls while they made their way to pick up Azula. Zhao is only going for a quick visit and meeting with the Fire Lord to update him on his representative role. They reach Azula’s school’s gates and drive inside. 

Azula was a different story. Zuko loves his sister with his whole life and would do anything to protect her. He knows that the reason why she is cold towards him is his father’s doing. She was always the stronger one out of both of them, the best fire bender seen in decades. She was taken from his grasp when she was a child so she could be molded into what she was now. Sometimes he swore he saw flashes of longing in her eyes when she stared at him. He longed for their old friendship too. 

They pick up Azula and her two friends, Mai and Ty Lee, and drive off towards the airport to board their private jet. The girls spoke in the back seat, acting as if Zuko wasn’t there though Ty Lee did smile at him when she got into the SUV. Mai stopped talking to him after he began pushing her away the year before he left for Republic City. _After the agni kai._

The five of them boarded the private jet after going through security and sat down, none seeming too excited about heading home apart from Zhao.  
-  
Caldera was hot, humid and the heat clung to one’s skin. Even though it is winter, the air felt warm. However traditional royal robes helped ease the feeling a bit. This is home.

He is currently in the garden, sitting on the small hill that led to the pond where his turtle ducks are splashing around. He is going back to school in two days and his father has yet to see him. He isn’t sure if he is glad or disappointed. 

Just as he sat up to go feed the ducks, a servant came up to him and bows. 

“Your father requires your presence, your highness,” they said, still in a bow. Zuko feels the air suddenly go cold and inhales sharply. 

“Very well. You can go now,” he declares. The servant took a final bow before going back inside. Zuko exhales. He knew why he was being called to meet with his father. He made a mental note to stop by the market before he left to go buy supplies to create a soothing cream just as he did every break. He walks down the long hallways till he finally reaches the Fire Lord’s throne room at the very end of the palace. 

He takes one final deep breath before entering the room. The Fire Lord sat on his burning throne, the flames surrounding him. Zuko quickly kneels down and greets him. 

“Father, I-,” he starts before he is cut off by the flames bursting out around him. He quickly ducks his head down and avoids eye contact as his father steps down from the throne. He hears him pacing back and forth when suddenly he is backhanded. 

He fell onto his knees but did not make any further movement or noise. It would only end up worse. 

“Representative Zhao came over the other day before he left back to Republic City. He said the schools mailed your transcripts over to him. Azula’s grades were outstanding, not that I expected any less. Yours however… tell me, why did you receive a C+ in your history class?” 

“I- the teacher doesn’t like me,” he whispers. 

Louder, Zuko,” his father hisses. 

“The history teacher doesn’t like me!” he said a bit louder. There is silence, the flames actually going down around him. He peeked his head up a little and blinked up at his father standing over him. In a flash, his thin arm ends up in his father’s tight grip. The sleeve from the robe clumps down near his armpit, bare skin suddenly getting hot. He yanks him up and suddenly intense pain runs down his arm as his father burns his arm right above the elbow. 

“That is no excuse! You don’t need teachers to like you, you need them to respect you! Your sister would have demanded a better grade from the teacher. In fact, she wouldn’t need to work hard for it, especially a class as simple as history” he yelled before pushing him back down. 

“I-I’m sorry father, please forgive me. I will do better,” Zuko cries out. His sleeve rolls back down causing the fabric to rub painfully against the new burn. 

“Get out of my sight. I will be asking the headmaster for weekly updates once you get back to school,” he jeers. Zuko bows once more before rushing out of the room, tears in his eyes. He makes it to his room, miraculously without bumping into anyone. He knew it was due to the servants being aware of what takes place when he meets with his father. They’re aware of the fact and always avoid the nearby hallways when he goes in. 

Zuko reaches into his luggage where he has some bandages. He stumbles to the joint bathroom and fills the tub with cool water, making sure it isn’t too hot or too cold. While the tub fills, he goes to the sinks to rinse his burn. He carefully removes his robe and puts his arm at an awkward angle into the sink’s running water to clean the burn. 

It hurt and no matter how often it happened, it always felt awful. He’s experienced with cleaning up his injuries and is practically an expert at it now. Once he is sure the burn is clean, he applies the bandage to protect it from any dust or particles. He then rubs water on his face, wincing at the still sensitive feeling on his cheek from his father’s slap 

He further undresses and slides into the tub, making sure his bandaged arm is hanging out from the side to avoid getting it wet. With one hand, he applies shampoo to wash his hair. It was tricky but he did it. He then put on the conditioner and let it sit while he attempts to wash his body with his lavender scented body wash. 

The scent helps him relax a little but a new wave of emotions threaten to come out as his hand runs along the old scars covering his body. On his sides, legs, arms, chest… whenever he drags his hands across his body, he can’t even go 10 seconds of clear skin before he feels a scar. 

He washes out his hair and shakily stands up, grabbing a warm towel from the bathroom’s closet. He moisturizes before he puts on his briefs, carefully getting into bed after he is done. He is not in the mood to see anyone and stays in his room for the duration of their stay. 

The next few days passed like a blur for Zuko. He only left his bed to change out his bandage and to use the restroom. He stared at his ceiling when he wasn’t sleeping, numb to the world. On Sunday night, without a goodbye from his father, they made it back to Republic City. For a moment, it felt like he could breathe again. They had dropped off Azula and her friends a few minutes ago. 

The city lights usually looked nice at this time of night but tonight it was not visible. The bay brought in fog, covering the city in a blanket. The streets were empty, people at home preparing for work the next day or students getting ready for their first day back at school. 

Before he knows it, he is standing in the living room. Zhao sits on the couch in front of him and begins lecturing him about needing to keep up with his school work and that he has to try harder. _So this is why his father didn’t do much damage. He left it to Zhao._

He tries to tell him the same thing he told his father but Zhao shut him up. “If someone doesn’t like you, Prince Zuko, then you must be doing something wrong. Fix it,” he taunts. Zuko nods and he is dismissed. Running up to his room, he lands a punch on the wall. 

His hand ached but it felt good. He hugs his hand to his chest and crumbles onto his bed. All the emotions he held in while back at home suddenly release. He sobs into his pillow, trying to hide the noise from Zhao who was still awake downstairs. That will definitely not go well if he was caught crying. 

Eventually, he cries himself to sleep, too exhausted to change or even set up an alarm. 

It was 9 in the morning when he awoke but he decided to skip his first day back. He knows he will be hearing an earful from Zhao later but at the moment, he does not care. He’s tired and did not have the energy to see his classmates and he definitely did not have the spirit to put on his princely act. He went back to sleep even though Agni’s rays kept bothering him, pleading to go bask in the energy he was offering. 

He did not want to feel anything. When he wakes up again, it is nearly midnight. He had slept the whole day. His phone vibrates next to him, a certain text tone coming afterwards and he quickly grabs it. Only four people have his number and he has a specific text tone for each person. This was Jet’s tone. 

_J: u back? 11:53pm_  
_Z: Yeah. 11:55pm_  
_J: come over 11:55pm_

Jet’s place was a 30 minute walk in the opposite part of the city. He now knew this area like the back of his hand. He takes shortcuts through the alleyways, automatically turning at all the right corners till he is in front of Jet’s apartment. He climbs the tree leading right up to the second floor window; Jet’s bedroom. He knocks on the glass and soon it opens, Jet letting Zuko in. 

Jet’s adoptive parents were none the wiser of how often Jet sneaked him in. They’re slightly older and heavy sleepers so it was easy to do so. By the time Zuko comes over, they’re crashed out in their own bedroom. Despite this, it was easier climbing the tree to reach Jet’s window than it was for Jet to come down to open the apartment building’s front door. 

“I missed you,” Jet says as they sit down on his bed. It seems as if tonight he is in a good mood. They talk about what Jet did over break while he rolls a joint. Getting introduced to smoking was one of the best things Jet has done for him. It helped him feel relaxed in a way he never experienced before. 

They passed the joint between them, talking some more till it’s gone. Eventually they end up making out but both being quite high, they fall asleep. Zuko wakes up at 7 in the morning and curses. He peeks outside Jet’s window to make sure no one is outside before he climbs down the tree and he sprints home. 

He takes a 5 minute shower and puts on his uniform in a flash. He has no time to do his hair but he attempts to brush it with his fingers while he waits for the chauffeur to come pick him up. He adjusts his red tie as the chauffeur beeps that he’s outside. 

He looks at the time. **8:17am**

Of course he decides to be late on a Tuesday and it so happens to be after his history class begins. The driver drops him off at the front of the school and Zuko hurriedly enters the building even though he is already late for Mr. Fong’s class. 

He climbs up the steps at a steady pace and tries to calm his heart rate down before opening the door of the classroom. Unfortunately the wind from the classroom’s open windows decide to take the door with it and slam it into the wall. 

“Zu-” he hears anyways. 

“I’m here,” he says. 

“Ah, Prince Zuko. Nice of you to be joining us,” his least favorite teacher mocks. He ignores him and makes his way to his seat. Fong plays a documentary, something he could seriously care less about. He spends the rest of the lesson observing the students in front of him. He’s surprised to see a new student sitting at the front besides a guy named Haru.

He only sees the back of his head but he can see how tense he’s sitting. He looks away and begins to count down the minutes till class is over. Class ends and break starts. He usually spends his breaks and lunches in an empty classroom besides his AP biology class, not in the mood to be near people. 

Break ends and he goes to AP Bio, sitting at the back once again. The teacher goes over some review sheets that he does with a breeze. He never has partners in class so he has to rely on himself to know and understand the material. 

During lunch he goes back to his empty classroom. He should go to the cafeteria and get lunch but he is not in the mood to hear everyone talk about their break. A few minutes before lunch ends, he gets up and walks to his AP English class. Mrs. Song always leaves the door open for him since she knows he likes getting there early. 

He pulls out the book she gave him a few days before break and continues reading it. After a few minutes, he hears footsteps walk into the classroom. He doesn’t look up, assuming it’s Mrs. Song. However he feels someone’s heavy gaze. 

He peeks through his fringe and sees the boy from Fong’s history class standing beside the desk. He doesn’t seem to notice that Zuko caught him staring. He rolls his eyes and continues reading. More steps come into the classroom, this time even heading towards him. 

“Hello, Prince Zuko,” he hears a soft voice call out to his right. He looks up and Mrs. Song places a book on his desk. “This is the new book we’ll be reading for class this semester,” she adds. 

He thanks her but he knows she isn’t going to leave yet. She’s going to try and pry, ask if he’s okay. “Are you feeling alright?” _He was right._

"I’m fine,” he huffs. He does not want someone to pretend to care or for someone to pity him. 

“My classroom is always open, Zuko, if you ever need to talk,” she smiles. 

“I said I’m fine!” he huffs and looks away, feeling slightly bad for being rude. Mrs. Song doesn’t say any more and she walks to the front of the class to talk to the new student. 

“Hm, there seems to be an empty seat besides Zuko. He’s the one in the back corner,” he hears. _Wait, what?_ He looks up and sees the guy hesitating before making his way to the back. He wonders if he’s going to sit right beside him or in the other chair. 

Of course he sits a desk apart. Why does he feel disappointed by that? He huffs at himself for feeling that way. The new guy must have taken it the wrong way because now he feels his glare. He’s used to receiving looks of anger though, so he pays no attention. 

Then the tapping began. Usually he’d ignore any unnecessary noise but the new guy is sitting to his right, his only hearing ear having the misfortune of hearing the tapping as if it were a lot closer than it is.

He turns to glare at him and gets frustrated when it only makes his pencil tapping get louder. He clenches his fists to try and calm down. It will do no one any good if he explodes right in the middle of class, especially him. After a few seconds, the taps stop. _Finally._ He officially hates the new kid. 

He does his work and turns it in first so he could get to his favorite study spot. No one ever sits there since he claimed the spot last year but one never knows. As he gets up to head out of the classroom, he purposely crashes his hip into the guy’s desk and smirks as he hears him gasp. _Serves him right._

He goes down the elevator and walks down the hall to the secluded seating area. He pulls out his book and continues reading where he left off before his english class began. He hears footsteps walk along the hallway before they suddenly come to a stop. 

_He looks up and internally screams. Seriously?_

“Are you following me or something?” The boy made a face of disgust at the question, as if he’d rather die than to be near Zuko. 

“As if, I was just leaving once I saw you here,” he replies. 

“Yeah, whatever,” Zuko replies before trying to go back to reading. He isn’t in the mood for a fight anyways. He just wants to be alone in peace for the rest of the study hour. However, despite the other’s claim, he sits down on one of the couches. _Is he serious?_ He slams his book down, shaking in anger, before making his way to the boy. 

“Are you fucking kidding me? Leave!” Now that he’s up close, he sees that he’s from the water tribe as the blue tie stands out across his white button down. 

“Listen, you might look down on us all because you think you’re oh so powerful or whatever but you can’t order me around. In fact, I’m only leaving because you piss me off. The truth is nobody gives a shit about you, I’m sure. If they do, it’s out of fear. Also tell your fucking sister to stop messing around with my family,” the boy yells before walking down the hallway. 

Zuko stood in shock, surprised that all came out of his mouth. He felt pain at the words because it’s true, nobody cares for him. He doesn’t speak to Azula either so he’s confused as to what the guy is talking about. He chases after him in anger. 

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, water tribe,” Zuko calls out as he grabs the guy’s shoulder. The new guy is taller than him and more bulkier. He’s a little afraid but he hides it under his glare. He knows he can take him down if it gets physical. 

He pushes Zuko away and shrieks, “don’t touch me.”

“What is going on here!” a voice calls out from the end of the hallway. _Oh no… Headmaster Ukano._ He looks down at his shoes, wishing he could disappear. 

“Ah, Sokka from the Water Tribe. I have yet to introduce myself. I’m Headmaster Ukano,” the headmaster declares and shakes the guys hand. _Sokka. Why does it sound familiar?_

“However, you boys were causing a ruckus out here with your shouts. Prince Zuko, I expected better from you. I’m going to have to make a phone call to your father. It hasn't even been a week since school began,” remarks. 

Zuko felt his body go numb but nodded anyways. There is nothing for him to say. The headmaster had witnessed them screaming and now he is going to get punished, he was sure. 

“Of course, sir. Whatever you think is best,” he says in a steady voice. This is all Sokka’s fault. The headmaster leaves and Zuko feels all the anger come back to him suddenly. He glares at the boy next to him. 

“Leave me the fuck alone or else there will be problems,” he threatens before making his way back to the seating area. He fights the urge to curl into a ball. By now the headmaster would’ve called his father meaning he’s already notified Zhao about the incident. He tries to keep his breathing under control but as the bell rings signaling the end of the school day, his breathing seems to get worse. 

He slowly stands up and walks on autopilot to the familiar black SUV. The ride home is too quick and pretty soon, he is kneeling on the living room floor as Zhao paces back and forth before him. He was just in this position with his father not even five days ago. 

The harsh kick to his ribs has him gasping for air. He curls his body in a ball, trying to block Zhao’s blows. 

“Are you aware of who Sokka is? He is the son of the new representative,” he grits out. He lifts Zuko by the arm, the arm with the still healing burn, and pushes him against the wall. 

“I didn’t know! He came up to me!” he cries. 

Zhao slams his head against the wall, getting annoyed by his crying. 

“If I find out tomorrow that he told his father, you’re getting it,” he says and drops him before walking to his office. He hears the door slam shut but Zuko still lays on the floor. He pushes himself up and drags his knees to his chest. 

His arm was in so much pain, his body ached, and the room was spinning. He most likely had a concussion. He will stay away from this Sokka guy from now on. He wasn’t worth arguing against. And Zuko was right, every person who enters his life- even someone like Sokka who technically isn’t even _in_ his life- causes nothing but pain. 

There was no one for Zuko to turn to, no where to turn. He is alone. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay safe everyone <3


	7. Future Plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to drop a quick chapter! Schools been kicking my ass. Also who here is watching Attack on Titan?

Sokka decided not to mention the prince when his dad picked him up after school. Katara sat in the back, thankfully, in one piece. _No incidents today it seems._ He didn’t want to bring up his own altercation with the prince because then it’ll spiral Katara into thinking they were both being targeted by Fire Nation royalty which was not the case.

Sokka did feel a little guilty for today. He should have just left as soon as he saw the prince but then he remembered the jerk is probably used to people listening to his every command and getting everything he wants. Sokka was not going to become one of those people. _That’s probably why he reacted the way he did._ Probably the one time he doesn’t get what he wants.

They arrive home and he goes to his room, wanting to be alone with his thoughts. As he lays in his bed, his thoughts once again drift to the prince. He didn’t get the best look at him but he noticed just enough to be able to tell that he’s strangely pretty. Despite the scar, which probably scared off some people, he had a really handsome face. The scar added to his face’s appeal, if he’s being quite honest. _Not that he’d ever tell him that._ He’s sure the prince thinks he’s attractive, seeming so confident while they had their verbal fight. 

Although he seemed to favor the back desk in their classes, he seemed like the type to attract everyone’s attention if he wanted it. He probably sits in the back to avoid people who he thinks are below him. Or maybe he was just shy? Though it seemed impossible to Sokka that the prince could be shy just from the way he was screaming at him so openly earlier. 

It then occurred to Sokka that he really just yelled at the crown prince of the Fire Nation. He hoped the guy didn’t tell his father, he seriously did not want the Southern Water Tribe to get into any political scandals while his dad is in office. Let alone that he’s been in office for less than a month! He’s sure that the annoying Representative Zhao will use that to his advantage. Even though he has his own story with the representative, plus the altercation with Zuko, he’s sure no one would believe some teen from the Water Tribe. Especially if what Suki said about the corrupt Earth Kingdom representatives was true. He and his family could kiss Republic City good bye. 

He wondered where the royal siblings stayed while they went to school so far from home. His best guess is that they’re probably dorming. He wasn’t sure if there’s more Fire Nation royalty staying in the city.

A knock sounds at his door, pulling him away from his thoughts. 

“Come in,” he shouts. He lifts his head as his door opens, Katara entering the room and closing the door again. He sits up quickly, worried that maybe something else did happen at school today. 

“What’s wrong?”

“I was going to ask you that actually,” she states. Of course she would know something happened. Katara knows him so well. He stays quiet, not sure if he should tell her. He did not want her to worry about their future in Republic City but maybe if he tells her, she’ll feel better about her incident with Azula. 

“Quit thinking about it and tell me, Sokka,” she says with a hint of worry in her voice. He sighs and decides to tell her. He starts with when he first saw him when he entered Fong’s class by slamming the door, to when he rudely shouted at their english teacher, to their study period where they both yelled at one another only to be shut up by the headmaster. 

Katara stands there with her mouth open in shock before it settles into a glare.

“Ugh, that asshole! He almost got you in trouble on your second day,” she says in anger. He just shrugs. “Don’t worry, I honestly don’t think he’s going to bother me again. He basically told me to leave him alone.”

“Well don’t bother him unless he bothers you again. I’m tired of playing nice! They need to learn that the world doesn’t revolve around them,” she says with a shake of her head.

“Well that goes for you as well. Don’t go looking for Azula.” From what he knows so far about the princess, it seems as if she’s more prone to using violence. No one batted an eye at the prince other than occasional glances. Very few of those glances were looks of fear.

Katara nods and sits down on the bed. He pulls out the pamphlets he took from the stand yesterday and shows her. 

“You should totally join a club. The sword training club sounds like it’ll fit you perfectly,” she states while looking through the three pamphlets. She stops smiling when she sees the hockey pamphlet. 

“Gross! I didn’t know Hahn and his friends were in Republic City,” she pretends to gag as she sees the team picture from the previous season. 

“Yeah! I forgot to mention that. Surprisingly he helped me find my homeroom yesterday,” he states and suddenly a horrible thought comes to him. 

“Fuck… I just remembered something. After he showed me to my homeroom yesterday, the teacher pointed me to an open desk in the back and Hahn literally laughed. My desk partner hasn’t shown up to homeroom these last two days but I have an idea of who it could be,” he sighs. 

Katara raises an eyebrow, waiting for this answer.

“Zuko showed up late to Fong’s class. He loves sitting in the back! Of course it has to be him. Hahn laughed because he probably knows I’m going to be miserable, that asshole.”

Katara’s eyes widen and offers some advice, “Maybe you can ask your homeroom teacher to change your seat?”

“Every other seat is already taken and I doubt anyone would want to change their seats and sit next to him. There’s a reason the desk beside him has been empty for a full semester. Either way, I’m not taking my drama to a teacher just yet.”

“Hm, okay. He better not do anything funny,” she warns. They talk for a few more minutes until she leaves to her own room to do homework. He should probably start his. Sokka works for the next few hours and heads downstairs for dinner once he finishes. He then goes back upstairs and scrolls through social media before going to sleep.

_Let’s see if he’s really the mystery guy who hasn’t shown up to homeroom in two days._

-

The next morning, Sokka practically rushes to his homeroom to get there before his partner does. If his partner really is Zuko, he wants him to be shocked at seeing Sokka sitting at the desk. He spots his homeroom’s door open and he hurries in but stops halfway inside.

_Damn it!_

Sitting already at their own desk is the prince, once again reading a book. Sokka composes himself before walking over to his desk, ready to see the prince’s reaction since he has yet to look up.

It’s only when Sokka slams his bag on the back of the chair that the prince startles. He looks at Sokka in shock for a few seconds then he scowls.

“Didn’t I tell you to leave me alone?”

“Well unfortunately for me, Piandao sat me down here yesterday,” he rolls his eyes. “I wouldn’t willingly sit beside you.”

Zuko's scowl deepens but he turns back to his book instead of replying. Sokka scrolls through his phone for a few minutes actually enjoying the silence. But of course Sokka could never have nice things because before long, loud laughter comes from the hallway and into the room.

Hahn and his friends come in, laughing obnoxiously but it suddenly stops when they spot them sitting at their desks. Hahn smirks as he makes his way over, his gang following behind. Sokka prepares to be annoyed assuming they were making their way to him but is surprised when they stop at the prince’s desk.

The prince slams his book down and looks up with a harsh glare. 

“Hey asshole,” Hahn smirks.

 _What?_

“What do you bastards want?” the prince replies, voice indifferent.

“Well we haven’t seen you these last two days. We missed our favorite prince,” he responds. 

“I am not _your_ prince. I am the crown prince of the Fire Nation, a nation of respect and honor. Nothing like your sad land,” the haughty jerk says. 

Even though the prince wasn’t talking about the Southern Water Tribe in particular, it still made him angry that he dared to speak about his sister tribe in that way. 

Hahn obviously felt this anger and grabbed the prince by the collar of his shirt. Zuko just stared at him, not flinching at the sudden grip Hahn had on him. At least that’s what it looked like to them. If they had paid closer attention, they would have seen the tiny flinch the prince let out.

“I’d let go if I were you, Hahn, unless you want to go to the headmaster’s office” a voice called out. They all turned and saw Piandao coming into the classroom, a stern look on his face. Hahn growls in rage but pushes the prince back in his seat anyways. They all leave for their own seats at the front. 

Zuko brushes off his sweater vest to get the wrinkles out and continues his reading. Sokka glares at him. Why was Hahn the only one to get the warning? Didn’t Piandao hear the offensive words the jerk spit at Hahn? 

He continues glaring until he feels eyes staring at him. He looks around and finds Hahn staring directly at him in thought. He’s planning something, he can tell.

Soon the bell rings and the rest of the students pile in. Piandao goes over some announcements before leaving them to their own devices till the next bell rings. 

Teo and he work really well together, doing the class work in a breeze. They spent lunch with the rest of the group until the bell rings signaling it’s time to head for his PE class. He gets the school issued PE uniform from Pakku and walks to the locker room.

He finds a locker without a lock and claims it as his own with a sticker that Pakku instructed him to put on the front. Sokka changes quickly and goes to meet up with the rest of the class inside the gym. Once everyone arrives, Pakku instructs them to go to the track outside the gym to run the mile. Everyone groans at the thought but Sokka couldn’t help but to feel excited. He loves running. He prefers weight lifting than cardio but one can never go wrong with some running. 

He stretches before taking off at a steady pace. He laughs to himself as a number of students sprint by him. They’re just wasting their energy. Four laps around the track is a mile and on his last lap, Sokka sprints it and passes everyone, including Hahn and his friends.

Pakku stood in shock at the end of the track holding a timer. 

“I’m impressed. Only a few other students run the mile in under seven minutes. Have you considered trying out for the track team?” he asks.

“I have actually. Are you in charge of the team?” 

“Yes along with Mr. Piandao and Mr. Jeong Jeong. You would be a great edition to the team. A lot of our mile runners graduated,” he adds.

Sokka agrees and assures him he’ll be at tryouts in two weeks. He stretches some more before heading to the locker room to change early so he could make it to lunch without their being a huge line.  
As he puts his uniform away, the rest of the students pile in just finishing their mile. 

“You’re fast,” he hears the familiar, annoying voice calling out.

“Thanks,” he acknowledges as Hahn comes closer.

“Hey, I noticed you glaring at the prince in homeroom earlier. He’s a real bastard, isn’t he? The guys and I want to teach him a lesson when he least expects it. You in?”

Sokka considers it for a few moments but is unsure. Sure the prince has been nothing but a jerk so far but he hasn’t done anything too bad to Sokka yet. 

“I’ll think about it,” is all Sokka says at the end. 

“We won’t be going through with it till probably a few weeks from now so you have time,” Hahn responds. He turns around to go with the rest of his friends and leaves Sokka with his thoughts. 

Sokka knows the prince deserves it but he can’t help to feel a little bad. He’s only one guy and he’d be going against most of the hockey team. The players are huge. Most are over 6ft and pure muscle. The prince is thin and small, couldn’t possibly be taller than 5’7. However, the guy was most likely a firebender if his scar was anything to go by. That made Sokka more scared for the team than anything. He has personal experience of how deadly fire can be. 

The anger he felt towards the prince suddenly returns. Sokka decides if the prince commits another error towards him or if his sister does anything else to Katara, he’ll join in on the plan. But for now, he’ll just be in the side lines.

Lunch passes by just as fast. He walks with Aang to their art class and suddenly feels the need to know more about the prince. Although Aang was only a freshman, he’s sure that he must know some things. 

They sit down beside one another and Sokka waits till the teacher gives instructions before he asks. 

“Okay class. Today I want you guys to brainstorm on some ideas for the water color portrait you’re going to create next class.”

With everyone around them caught up in their own conversations, Sokka decided it was the perfect opportunity to ask Aang about Zuko. 

“Hey Aang... can I ask you something?” He hesitated for a bit. He really didn’t want to bring anyone into his drama with Zuko but in order to know his enemy, he had to get some information on his enemy. 

“Sure Sokka! What’s up?” he smiles. 

“How much do you know about Prince Zuko?” he whispers. Aang’s smile drops and is replaced with a look of sadness.

“Not a lot, honestly. Why do you want to know?”

“No reason… just intrigued by his mysterious persona,” Sokka plays it off. Aang narrows his eyes for a split second before smiling again.

“Well, I tried talking to him last semester! He seemed lonely so I offered to be his friend… and he threw a flame at me.” Sokka gasps in shock.

“Well it wasn’t directly at me! He threw near me, almost like a warning! I was being super persistent anyways so I guess he snapped,” Aang says with a shrug. 

“Still doesn’t make it okay to just throw fire around! What if he had burnt something down?” Sokka finally says after the shock wore off. 

“I don’t think he meant to cause harm. The fire fizzled out before it even touched a surface. Plus it was on the football field. Do not worry!” 

Sokka is, in fact, worrying. Now he knows that if pushed, the prince will use his bending. Plus he always _assumed_ the prince was a fire bender but now it was 100% confirmed by Aang. He needs to be extra careful around the prince now. 

“Why’d you even want to be his friend in the first place if he just kept rejecting the friendship?”

“Like I said, he seemed lonely. I thought if I kept trying, he’d see that I really meant it. I hope he isn’t sad that I stopped trying,” Aang sighs. Man, that kid was too pure. 

“I’m sure he’s fine, Aang. He seems fine to me. He’s in two of my classes.”

Aang’s eyes widened in happiness. 

“Oh Sokka you have to try being his friend!”  


“Oh tui, no!” 

“Why not?” Aang huffed.

“We do not like each other. We don’t even tolerate one another. I don’t even want to be friends with someone who acts the way he does,” Sokka retorts. 

Aang just gives him a look before sighing once again. 

“I guess then. I honestly don’t think he must be all bad. He’s probably working through some issues.”

“What issues could a prince have apart from the responsibility of being the next fire lord? He has money, power, and just about everything he could ask for,” Sokka says in anger. He was not going to feel pity towards the prince because honestly there didn’t seem to be anything that he should feel bad about. 

“Friendship and love is what he needs,” Aang replies before going back to his work.

Sokka thought it over before rolling his eyes. He doubts Zuko cares for those things. If he intentionally avoids creating friendships, it must be because he doesn’t want any. And love? He’s sure the prince has thousands of admirers back at home. Plus he has his family. Although Sokka can’t quite picture the fire lord showing affection, he’s sure the guy loves his only son. 

Aang begins talking about some project ideas and thoughts of the prince are once again at the back of his mind. 

It isn’t till he’s back home and getting ready for the next day that the thoughts come back. He’s angry that Zuko thinks it was okay to firebend at Aang, even if Aang seems to not care for it. He adds Aang and his friends to the list of people Zuko cannot touch. 

He drifts off to thoughts of the prince, his gold eyes glaring at him being his final image before he knocks out into his pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not proof read, oops.


	8. Partners

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been sooo busy. But I had some time to bust out a chapter! Also I know nothing about sword fighting so uh-   
> Also in this universe, track and field events include sword duels and some element stuff. We'll get more into that later on. Also ALSO your comments make me so happy omg!!! It's what really gives me motivation to put out a chapter <3 Thank you so much for all your comments and the kudos!

The rest of the week passed with hardly any interactions with the prince. There would be a lot of glaring and huffs but no actual verbal or physical interactions which was fine with Sokka. The less he interacted with him, the less chance of Zuko saying something that would piss him off. Overall, that means less of a chance of joining Hahn’s plan. 

It is now Monday. A whole week of being at the academy. It also meant that the sword fighting and mastering club was beginning today. He could hardly contain his excitement. While technology has certainly advanced weaponry the last few decades, the art of swordsmanship has stayed and is actually a preference among non benders. It wasn’t uncommon to see someone with swords on their backs or sides on the street. 

Sokka never had the opportunity to practice using swords while back home but now that he was here and there was even a club offered, he was going to take advantage of it. After his study period ended, he quickly stuffed everything in his bag and jogged out to the back of the gym. There were several buildings behind the gym and one of them was the armory room. 

Entering the building, he was shocked to see over 15 students sitting on the floor waiting for the instructor to come out. Thankfully Hahn and his friends weren’t any of the students there. He sat off to the side and listened to the chatter going on around him. 

“I trained with the best sword’s master in Omashu,” one student brags.

“I’ve been training with a sword since I was six,” another says. 

Insecurity began to set in. He’s had no prior training with a sword let alone even held one. Most, if not all, of the guys around him have had years of experience. Before he had time to dash out of the room, the back doors opened. 

Silence filled the room as the instructor walked in followed by another man. _Wait, is that… Piandao!_ Sokka let out a breath of relief at the fact that the instructor was his favorite teacher. However the usually smiling teacher looked serious as he stared at everyone in the room.

“Let me guess. You’ve all come hundreds of miles from your cities and villages to this academy and decided to join this club. You probably all believe you’re the best swordsman in your town and you think you deserve to learn from the master,” he calmly states.

Several heads nod and agree to which he scowls. 

“I will be setting up private interviews where you will have to prove your worth to me. My assistant, Fat, will call you individually. Let’s begin,” he states and walks to the back room which is most likely his office. 

“Banu,” Fat calls. A cocky Earth Kingdom kid stands up and walks into the office. After a few minutes, the kid storms out of the office and out of the building. The pattern continues where overly-confident guys go in and leave storming. Only three stay. After forty minutes, Sokka is the last one who has yet to be called.

“And lastly, Sokka,” he hears Fat call out. 

He sharply inhales and quickly stands. He stands before Fat who has yet to open the office door. 

“What did you bring him to prove your worth?”

 _Bring?!_ He didn’t know he had to bring something. Did he mean money?

He panics and begins to pat himself down to see if he had anything. 

“Well, uh…” 

“Right. Let’s get this over with,” Fat said with a shake of his head and opened the office door. Mr. Piandao sat on the floor near a chabudai stacked with scrolls, ink and brushes beside it. 

Sokka took a deep breath and began, “Master, it’s Sokka and I wish to be instructed in the way of the sword... And I know one thing for sure: I have a lot to learn.” 

He then kneels on the floor and closes his eyes. He hopes by showing honesty and humbleness, it will earn Piandao’s acceptance.

“You’re not doing a very good job of selling yourself,” he hears Piandao state. 

Soka exhales. “I know… your assistant told me that when I came in here, I’d have to prove my worth but the truth is, I don’t know if I am worthy.”

He just let out his biggest insecurity to his homeroom and math teacher. He’s feeling a little embarrassed but he knows he has to be honest. Hopefully his honesty didn’t take away his place in the club. 

Piandao sat quietly for a moment but then stood up before Sokka. 

“I see. Well then, let’s find out together how worthy you are. I will train you,” he says with a smile and grabs a sword and slammed the blade cover on the ground. 

Sokka grins. 

“Thank you so much for deciding to train me, Master. I won’t disappoint,” he squeals. Piandao laughs.

“I don’t think you will. Go wait outside with the other three,” he responds. Sokka stood and bowed before exiting. He sat on the floor and waited for Piandao and Fat to come out. After a few minutes, they came out and told the group to come closer to the front. 

Now closer, Sokka could see the other three’s ties. Two were Earth Kingdom while the other one was Fire Nation. He wasn’t surprised that there weren't any air nomads in here, or even the fact that he was the only Water Tribe guy. The hockey season is still going and he knows that’s where most of them are.

“So we won’t officially begin training today but I will be going over some things. I will also be passing out waivers since we will be using real swords later on in the year. Along with the waivers, permission slips will also be passed out. You will need a parent or guardian’s permission if you are under 17,” Piandao states. 

They all pass the papers amongst themselves and wait for Piandao to continue. 

“I will be the main instructor for this course. My assistant will also be helping you guys out as well as one of your classmate’s who has trained under me for years. I consider both Fat and the student masters. Fat, why don’t you give a small introduction on yourself?”

Fat introduces himself and gives some background information on how he got started working with Piandao. 

“My student should be here soon. Ah, there he is,” and signals to the back of the room. 

Sokka turns around to see who it is, excited to know there’s a student who is considered a master by Piandao. His mouth opens in shock when he sees the student. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he mutters quietly.

“Prince Zuko! Why don’t you give a small introduction,” Piandao smiles. 

Zuko bows when he enters, giving the Fire Nation bow. Piandao does as well. He then walks to the front of the room. When he catches Sokka’s eyes, he scowls but makes no scene. Others may think it was his usual face of anger but after observing Zuko for a week, he can tell his frowns apart. This was his frown of annoyance. 

Sokka glares right back.

“Uh- Zuko here. I began training with Master Piandao when I turned 8. He officially declared me a master at age 12,” he states. 

Piandao smiles brightly at him before moving on to his own introduction. 

“You guys may have had me or currently have me as your math teacher. I’ve trained with a sword for decades now. I’m a Fire Nation army veteran. I left the army so I could pursue a career in teaching.

We will be meeting every Monday and Wednesday at 3:20pm to 4:30pm unless stated. Since I am still a teacher and am busy, my two assistants here are available for one on one training outside of our regular schedule. You just have to schedule an appointment to find a day and time that works well with both of you.”

Sokka immediately decides to never pair up with Zuko. He’d probably mutilate him and claim it an accident. Everyone would most likely believe it, too. _Yes,_ he decides. _He will never partner with Zuko._

Since they can’t do much without signed waivers and permission slips, Piandao asks Fat and Zuko to have a little duel. The prince goes to the locked armoury closet and pulls out dual broadswords. Fat grabs a regular dao sword. They both bow to one another before getting into position. As much as he hates the guy, he has to admit that watching Zuko with the swords is like watching a dance performance. He’s graceful, his steps and swings carefully calculated. He’s sure using one sword is complicated, he can’t even imagine using two. No wonder he’s declared a master swordsman. 

He wonders why Zuko wanted to learn how to use a weapon when he has his very own weapon within himself. Being a prince, he must have had the best fire bending teachers so he’s probably a master in that too. The guy must know how to defend himself really well which, once again, makes him a little afraid for Hahn’s group. 

The duel ends with Zuko knocking Fat’s sword out of his hand and with the dual swords pointing at his chest. Everyone, even Sokka, claps at the performance. Zuko puts his swords aside and the two do the Fire Nation bow.

“We will, of course, begin on Wednesday but not with swords or even wood swords. We will begin with some knowledge,” Piandao claims. “You are dismissed.” The students do their own bows and leave the room. 

Sokka tries to quickly leave the room, almost reaching the door but the prince steps in front of it blocking his path. Sokka groans. He expected this.

“I wasn’t sure if you were following me last week but now I’m having my doubts,” the prince huffs. Sokka gawks at him.

“Why would I want to be anywhere near you! I joined because I've always wanted to learn. It’s not like your name was advertised on the pamphlet,” he retorts. The prince looks unconvinced. 

“What’s next? Joining the track and field team, too?” 

Sokka pauses.

“Oh for Agni’s sake, please tell me you’re not actually joining,” Zuko practically whines. He’s never heard Zuko use that tone of voice before and laughter bursts out of Sokka. The prince’s defensive scowl appears and Sokka stops laughing.

“Yes, I am joining. Mr. Pakku was impressed with my mile time and asked me to attend tryouts,” Sokka says proudly. 

Zuko looks him up and down. 

“I don’t see you as the type to run long distance runs. You’d do well with the sprinters,” he casually states. Sokka blinks. _Did he just give him helpful advice or did he mean to offend him?_

“Well I’ve never tried sprinting before. I’ll probably check it out at tryouts. Are you a distance runner?”

Zuko nods. “I’m also the only swordsman in the school so I do that as well… and some firebending events.”

It occurred to Sokka that they were actually having a decent conversation without any glaring or negative words. But of course he had to ruin it all.

“Firebending? They actually allow jerkbending in the sport?”

Zuko’s calm look disappears, a cold glare replacing it. 

“All four nations have their own event when it comes to benders. No one competes in events that are not of their element,” he bristles. 

He then looks at Sokka and a sudden evil look comes to his face. 

“You’re not a bender, huh? That’s why you joined the club, to not feel so useless,” he hisses. 

All of the shame and unworthiness Sokka has felt due to not being a bender suddenly comes crashing into him. Instead of sadness, he feels great anger. Angry that he wasn’t born a bender, angry he could never protect Katara if anything were to happen, angry at the Fire Nation for taking his mom with their evil bending, and angry at the prince for pointing out his insecurity.

“So what if I’m not a bender? I’d rather have no bending than have the element of fire running in me. Your element has caused nothing but pain and destruction previous decades and the pain is still felt today by many. The Fire Nation may not be actively ‘evil’ anymore but that doesn’t mean the history is erased. Evil is directly in your bloodline and in you,” Sokka yells. 

The prince’s eyes widen with every word Sokka shouts. When Sokka finishes, he doesn’t say anything and he storms out of the room instead. Sokka leans against the wall and tries to keep his breathing even. He feels as if he’s on the verge of a panic attack with all the emotions he let out. 

He glances around the room and is thankful to see it empty. He now knew that Fat and Piandao are from the Fire Nation and it would’ve been awkward if they had heard. Either way, he doesn’t count them as evil. Zuko, on the other hand, has colonizing ancestors who have caused nothing but pain. The Earth Kingdom colonies are proof of that, as well as his mom’s passing. 

Once his breathing has evened out, Sokka grabs his backpack and makes his way to the front of the school so he could wait for his dad. There’s still a few students around from other clubs and sports but not many. 

He sits on the cement steps and puts his head on his hands. Right when he thought the prince wasn’t so bad, he says something that brings the reminder right back. Sokka wasn’t always insecure about his non-bending skills. It all began after his mom’s passing. Katara was so young, she couldn’t have done anything, but if he had just had bending he could’ve stopped the evil man when they had visited the Earth Kingdom colony that day. 

_Beep_

He quickly looks up and sees his dad parked in front of him. He sighs and gets into the car, hoping his dad doesn’t question why he had been so distracted. His dad doesn’t talk until they are halfway home.

“Son, are you okay?”

_Dang it._

He felt like lying and saying that everything was okay but he’s kept so many things from his dad these last few weeks. He decides to be honest.

“No, not really. I almost had an anxiety attack,” he starts. His dad waits for him to continue.

“I got into an argument with Zuko, uh- he’s the prince of the Fire Nation,” he clarifies. His dad’s eyes widened at the news but continues to keep quiet.

“We’ve had a few arguments here and there but today he said something about being a non-bender and it kinda set me off. It made me think about mom,” he finishes. 

His dad’s eyes soften. 

“Oh son, you know that being a bender or not does not determine your worth! The accident that happened with your mom was terrible but you having bending would not have changed the situation. The prince probably has some internal feelings to work through but he should not be taking it out on you. If he keeps bothering you, please let me know so I can tell Representative Zhao,” he lectures.

“Why would you tell Representative Zhao?” Sokka questions.

“He mentioned how he’s the guardian of the princess and prince while they attend school here,” his dad informs. 

“Ah okay. Well I’ll let you know, dad.”

They take a detour before making it home after Yue and Suki invite him to eat dinner at their dorm apartment, Katara already being there since she hung out with them after school.

They all sit in a semi-circle and talk about school. 

“Oh! I joined the sword training and mastering club,” Sokka announces. They all cheer for him. 

“I’m also joining the school’s track team. Tryouts are next week.” Katara cheers but Yue and Suki glance at one another.

“Do you know who’s in the track team?” Yue asks.

Sokka narrows his eyes. “If you’re talking about Prince Jerk, yes I do know,” he rolls his eyes. Then he looks at them suspiciously. “Wait, how do you guys know?”

“We’re on our school's team! All the school’s in the area go to the same meet so we know who’s in the team and so on,” Suki states. 

Katara perks up. “I’d love to join! When are tryouts?” Suki begins to inform Katara of tryouts and all the events while Yue sits closer to Sokka.

“So how did _you_ find out that Prince Zuko is on your school’s team?”

Sokka sighs. “We had another small incident today. I found out before the incident though. We were actually having a somewhat decent conversation till he ruined it!” 

Yue lays a hand on his shoulder and rubs it comfortingly. 

“I’m mainly over it but I’m kind of annoyed that he’s basically in the two clubs that I want to join! Oh yeah, he’s also in the sword training and mastering club not as a student but as an assistant,” he huffs. 

“Oh yes, I saw him compete in that last year and he won first place! But that’s besides the point, are you sure you want to continue the swords club and join track if he’s there?”

He nods. “I can’t let him scare me away. If I stop showing up, he’s going to think I let him get to me. I’m going to continue.”

Sokka won’t even count today’s incident as a reason to join Hahn’s plan so the prince should be grateful. He could’ve gone to the headmaster or told his dad to tell Representative Zhao but he didn’t. 

In his opinion, he was being too nice. 

He focused back on his friends and ate his dinner. That’s a problem for later.  
-  
The prince was absent from homeroom and Fong’s history class today. Sokka wonders if he’s going to show up to their english class today. He remembers how he didn’t show up twice in homeroom last week. Is this a normal occurrence? _Not that he cared._

However, showing up to english class, the prince was sitting at his desk. This time he isn’t reading a book, something he seems to always do.

He sits beside him without a word and takes out the homework. Zuko’s own homework on top of his desk. He notices bruised knuckles once again. He tries to sneak a glance at his face but Mrs. Song came into the room along with the rest of the class before he could. 

“Settle down, class! Today we have something exciting planned. We will be doing a two week project on career planning,” she says with a smile.

“The exciting part is that this will be done in pairs, which I will be choosing!” The class groans. Sokka can’t help but to feel excited. He has yet to talk to the other students in the class since most of their work is done individually. 

“I will be reading off names now. Hide and Lee. Kuzon and Al…” 

As the names continued to be named off, Sokka had a sinking feeling in his stomach. _Oh please don’t pair me with him._

“Sokka and Zuko!”

_FUCK!_

Both heads swivel to one another in horror. Sokka’s doubles in horror when he sees Zuko’s face. He had a black eye which made his golden eye stand out.

“Okay! Get into your pairs and get to know one another for the rest of the class period. Also leave your homework on top of the desk so I can grab it while you talk,” Mrs. Song continues in the background.

“Dude, what happened to your face?” Sokka lets out. Zuko gives him a dirty look and checks to make sure no one has heard.

“None of your business, Water Tribe,” he scoffs.

“Did you beat up another student?”

“Sure.”

Sokka makes a face but decides to ignore the bruise for now.

“So I guess we’re partners, unfortunately.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys like!  
> Not proof-read.


	9. Everywhere I Look

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG YOUR GUYS COMMENTS MOTIVATED ME SO HARD TO PUT OUT A NEW CHAPTER, EYE-   
> WOW THANK YOU SO SO SO MUCH.  
> Also- do you guys like this style of writing where we see the scene from one perspective in one chapter and then the other boy's perspective in another? Thoughts??  
> -  
> TW:  
> verbal abuse, physical abuse, self-deprecation

The sky was still dark when Zuko left Jet’s house. He guessed it was either 4 or 5 in the morning. He couldn’t check since his phone died and Jet didn’t let him use his charger. 

_“There’s no reason for you to need your phone when you’re going to be sleeping… unless you’re talking to someone else,”_ he had said. So he didn’t argue with Jet but he stayed up all night with anxiety wondering if Zhao messaged him. 

Zhao has yet to catch him sneaking out but each time he left, he always feared that he would find out. He always left his phone on full volume during the nights he was out so he could react quickly if Zhao were to call or text. 

So here he was on a Monday morning rushing to the house before Zhao woke up. Firebenders rose with the sun so he was running out of time. He sprinted through the back alleys, not stopping till the familiar gates were in his sight. 

He swiftly enters the code and runs down the street to his house. He sneaks into the backyard and climbs up the patio’s roof so he could make it to his room on the second floor. He hid a step ladder on the roof so he could easily access his window which he left with slightly open.

He lands on his bedroom floor with a soft drop and he reaches for his phone charger to plug in his phone. The anxiety continued to build up as his phone slowly started to turn on. Eventually it turns on and a few notifications appear but thankfully none are text messages. He got lucky once again. It was only 5:40am. 

After half an hour, he heard Zhao downstairs talking loudly on the phone. He seemed upset. Zuko decided to stay upstairs till he left, he didn’t want to bump into an angry Zhao. After previous experiences, he knows better than to be in his way when he’s angry. 

He walks into his bathroom, which was thankfully attached to his bedroom, and takes a fast shower to get rid of the scent of smoke from his night with Jet. He could only imagine the scandal if people were to find out he smoked weed. He dries off and goes to his closet to get into his uniform.

He never liked wearing the blazers from school. They felt stiff and weren’t as comfy to wear as the sweaters were. He owned three so he could wear them on all the uniform days without having to worry if he dirtied one. 

It was nearing 7 in the morning and Zhao’s phone call thankfully ended. He hears the front door slam shut and Zhao leaving in his own car. Once the coast was clear, Zuko grabs his halfway charged phone and goes downstairs to make eggs and a smoothie. 

He usually skipped breakfast but track season was beginning next week. Since he was a long distance runner, it was important for him to have energy. Today he’s joining Mr. Piandao in the afterschool swords club as a teaching assistant. 

When he helped Piandao last year, Piandao considered all of the students unworthy save for two students. Those two students were seniors though and graduated. He hopes some underclassmen would join so he could watch them improve during his last years of high school.

He finishes his breakfast and makes his way to the front of the house where the chauffeur is waiting for him since he messaged him during breakfast. The drive to school was silent but he was grateful that the driver never bothered with small talk. 

He’d rather sit with his thoughts than have a conversation with someone who genuinely doesn’t care about his well being. Zuko is just a paycheck to him. Everyone around him are nothing but vultures wanting to take from or hurt him.

They arrive at the school and he takes a deep breath before getting off. He makes his way to his homeroom where he told Piandao he’d arrive 20 minutes early so they could talk about today’s club meeting. Not that Piandao had to tell him to arrive early, Zuko was always in his homeroom before the bell rang. 

He knocks on the door and his teacher opens it with a smile. They bow to one another Fire Nation style before Zuko makes his way inside to sit on the chair beside his desk.

“Good morning, Prince Zuko. Are you excited for today?” he greets. 

“I am, Master. It was a nice break but I’m ready to begin teaching again,” he replies.

They go over the plan they had for the afternoon and talk a little about track beginning next week since Piandao was one of the coaches. They end their meeting and Zuko walks to his desk where he pulls out his book.

He’s read this book so many times but it was mainly just a cover up to make it seem as if he had something to do so people don’t bother him. It usually worked. 

The sudden noise of the chair beside his being pulled back shook him out of his thoughts. Since he assumed no one was ever going to sit beside him in this back corner, he thought he didn’t have to worry about where his scar faced. Unfortunately he was in the back corner where the unburnt side of his face faced the windows. 

The Water Tribe boy arriving to homeroom always made him freak out since he never noticed him until he was already at his desk. Homeroom was always a tense experience for him since he never knew what the guy was doing beside him. If he tried to look at him with his good eye, it would mean turning his head around which was so obvious. He didn’t want Sokka to know about his weaknesses. 

He knew that Sokka thought he was an asshole and seemed as if he ignored him most of the time but he honestly can’t hear much out of his left ear or see out of his left eye. By the time he realizes the taller one is trying to get his attention, it looks bad. 

Not that it matters, he doesn’t care what he thinks. Sokka already considers him an asshole. Plus most of the time all Sokka does is glare at him or flip him off to which he does right back. He goes back into his own world and begins to daydream about assisting Piandao’s class later. 

-  
He’s late. Jet had called him after school and asked him to come over that night. When he heard voices of the students in the background, he began to accuse Zuko of throwing himself at all the boys. It was a long conversation, one that ended with Zuko promising to go over that night, and he was late. 

He rushes to put on sweats and a long sleeve so he can move around easier. He knows the class won’t be doing any actual training today but Piandao asked if he could do a duel demonstration with Fat later to show the students. 

He nears the armoury building’s door and pushes it open. 

“My student should be here soon. Ah, there he is,” Piandao states and points to him. “Prince Zuko! Why don’t you give a small introduction!”

Zuko flushes but bows before entering as a sign of respect for his swords master. He enters and walks to the front already preparing on what to say. He pauses his thoughts when he sees Water Tribe sitting at the front. 

_Spirits, why are you testing me with him?_

He gives his introduction and waits for Piandao to give the signal to start the duel with Fat. His mind goes on autofocus and his body becomes one with his dual broadswords as he lets them take control. He focuses on Fat’s body movement and strikes until it ends with both of his swords pointing at his chest. 

They bow and Zuko begins to prepare to stop the boy from leaving the room. At this point it’s beyond a coincidence that he’s appearing everywhere Zuko seems to be. _Is he spying on him?_ His paranoia begins to rise. He needs answers. 

As soon as Piandao dismisses the class, he sees Sokka attempt to escape but he speeds up to intercept him. He hears the other boy groan. Probably since he didn’t want any confrontation about getting caught spying. 

“I wasn’t sure if you were following me last week but now I’m having my doubts,” he observes. This causes the other boy to give him a surprised look. _Was he wrong?_

“Why would I want to be anywhere near you! I joined because I've always wanted to learn. It’s not like your name was advertised on the pamphlet!” _He has a point._

“What’s next? Joining the track and field team, too?” Seeing the hesitant look on Sokka says it all. Zuko begins to get frustrated. It seems that all his safe spots are getting infiltrated by this boy.

“Oh for Agni’s sake, please tell me you’re not actually joining,” he practically begs. Sokka laughs and insecurity fills Zuko. _Is he laughing at him? Or laughing because he’s not going to listen to him?_

The boy reveals that he is going to be joining because Mr. Pakku believed he’d be a good long distance runner but with a swift study of his body, he tells him he’d be a better sprinter. The other boy is tall and has large muscles on his legs that would make sprinting easier than running long distance. 

He tells Sokka about some of his events which include two long distance runs, sword dueling, and two firebending events. 

“Firebending? They actually allow jerkbending in the sport?”

The calm atmosphere grows tense. The conversation was going so smooth, he had forgotten the other boy clearly has something against people from the Fire Nation, especially fire benders. Despite his harsh life while in the palace, he will always defend his nation and his element. 

“All four nations have their own event when it comes to benders. No one competes in events that are not of their element,” he coldy informs. He then begins to connect the dots as to why exactly Sokka was here today. All of the people who train with Piandao are non benders. The only reason _he_ trained with Piandao was because his bending was weak, almost non-existent. Sokka was a nonbender. 

In all honesty, despite his father’s teachings, Zuko had nothing against non benders. In fact, he admired them for still holding their own in fights or duels. 

However Zuko’s first instinct when something is said against him or his nation is to verbally attack the other person.

“You’re not a bender, huh? That’s why you joined the club, to not feel so useless,” are the first words to spill out. He knows it would hurt Sokka since those very words hurt him too when he was younger.

_”Are you that useless with your bending that you have to train with a weapon?”_

Except Zuko should know by now that the other also uses harsh words in response to his own. 

“So what if I’m not a bender? I’d rather have no bending than have the element of fire running in me. Your element has caused nothing but pain and destruction previous decades and the pain is still felt today by many. The Fire Nation may not be actively ‘evil’ anymore but that doesn’t mean the history is erased. Evil is directly in your bloodline and in you.”

Zuko took every word in. He gets flashbacks to all the times Jet had told him similar things too. He never hid his disdain. 

_“No matter what you do or how hard you try, you’ll never be able to redeem your nation’s wicked history. Every generation of the royal family will carry their ancestor’s sin. That includes you.”_

He runs out of the room and goes straight to the locker rooms so he could grab his uniform and bag so he could leave. Seeing that the locker room is empty, he hides in one of the showers and turns on the water. He’s far enough from the stream of water that he won’t get wet but close enough to stay hidden behind the stall. 

Tears begin streaming down his face as painful memories begin to surface. His father considers him too weak since he has no malice in him but most people think he’s evil and will never be vindicated. Both these things give people an excuse to hurt him, to tear him down.   
He’s never even stood tall. 

He wipes his tears with his long sleeve and turns off the water. His chauffeur has probably been waiting for quite some time now. He looks in the mirror and scowls at his red, puffy eyes although it wasn’t obvious on his left eye due to the scar. He hated crying. It made him feel like a child, plus, it irritated his scar. 

Like a robot, he automatically walks to the car and sits in the back. It’s been the same routine every weekday since he started as a freshman nearly two years ago. Sometimes he can’t believe he’s only a semester away from his junior year. 

When they arrive at the house, he sees that Zhao thankfully isn’t home yet. He goes up to his room and begins to do homework. He always does his homework days before it's due. He and Azula had been taught to avoid procrastination so they could be responsible leaders who're ahead of everyone else. Instead of spending moments in panic because there’s no time, they can focus on the next task. 

Once he finishes his homework, his distraction is gone. The words begin filling his mind and take control.

_Worthless. Stupid. Good for nothing. Lucky to be born. Useless. Evil. Disfigured. Unredeemable._

He pulls at his hair, the pain causing a small distraction from the words but not enough. He goes to his favorite punching wall and aims his fist down hard. His knuckles ache but it still wasn’t enough. He needs to smoke to clear away his mind. He knows once the veteran comes home he won’t bother him. He only checks on him before he heads to bed to make sure Zuko’s in the house.

He goes to his walk in closet and crawls to the back where he keeps a box with his hidden stash. It’s an old shoebox where he taped up the holes to keep the smell in. He grabs a pre roll and his lighter, and makes his way to his window to smoke.

He lights up the joint and inhales the smoke for a few moments before exhaling. After a few more hits, he felt the tension leave his body and his head began to feel lighter. All negative thoughts clear his head. Eventually he finishes but he still stays by his window and watches the sun go down. Without realizing it, two hours go by and he’s hungry. 

By this point his high has mostly faded away but thankfully all negative thoughts have left his mind for now. He made sure to spray his room and change his clothing before making his way downstairs to eat dinner. 

He makes a vegetable rice bowl from last night’s leftover rice and sits down at the dining room table. He’s halfway through his meal when Zhao comes through the front door. His heartbeat quickens as he waits for his guardian’s move. 

He seems annoyed and glowers at Zuko for a few seconds but ultimately decides to just ignore him and heads to his room. The bedroom door slams shut and Zuko’s heart calms down. He hears no sound come from the room while he eats the rest of his dinner and assumes Zhao has gone to bed. 

He washes his dishes and goes upstairs, making noise just so Zhao could hear that he’s leaving to his room but not loud enough that it would piss him off. He goes straight to his phone and sees he has two messages from Jet.

_J: window will be open 7:39pm_   
_J: parents wont be home 2night 8:23pm_

While most firebenders fall asleep early, Zuko’s biological time clock never allowed him. He often woke up throughout the night due to nightmares so he just decided sleep wasn’t worth it so early into the night. Leaving to go over to Jet's so late wasn’t much of an issue. The issue was trying to wake up before the sun rose since he had to make it home before sunrise and Zhao woke up. He decides to not sleep over at Jet’s tonight.

At 11 o’clock, he slips on his shoes and patters over to the window, quietly climbing down the patio’s roof. Once his feet touch the grass, he runs to the front yard and out the street. In a way, running to and from Jet’s house is practice since there’s a considerable distance between the places of residence. 

He makes it to Jet’s window in no-time and climbs through. Jet lays in his bed, music quietly playing. His head rises when he sees Zuko and he smirks. Zuko climbs on the bed and they share a joint. They makeout for a few minutes before Jet moves to lay down, preparing to sleep. Zuko takes this as his cue to leave.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going back to the house. I have school tomorrow and I didn’t bring my uniform.”

“You come to my apartment all the time without bringing your uniform. You’re lying to me,” Jet sits up and glares. 

“I’m not lying to you, Jet, I just have to go home.”

“Who is it? Are you seeing someone else after me? Are you whoring around?” He fully gets up from the bed now and stands in front of Zuko.

“N-no! I would never do that! I just have to go back, please,” he begs. He had hoped there wouldn’t be any arguments that night but he never gets any of his wants. He was stupid to believe things would go the way he wanted them to go. 

Jet pushes him away from the window and locks it. He then grabs Zuko by the hair and throws him on the bed.

“You’re sleeping here tonight and that’s final,” he hisses. Zuko begins to shake in anger and gets off the bed.

“No! I’m leaving,” and tries to leave through the bedroom door. Jet comes up from behind him and slams him into the wall. It’s a good thing Jet’s parents aren’t home.

“Why aren’t you listening to me? You always listen!”

“I told you I have to go,” Zuko pushes him off. 

At being pushed, Jet throws his fist and punches Zuko in the face causing him to crumble to the floor. The impact of the punch made Zuko’s head slam into the wall. He felt dizzy and his right side of his face was in pain.

The blurriness from his right eye mixed with the pain made him panic. He began to hyperventilate and he felt Jet crouch down beside him.

“Zuko?”

All he saw was the blurry outline of his hand reaching towards him and he panicked. He landed his own punch which knocked Jet to the floor beside him since he was already crouching. They both froze in shock. Zuko’s never used violence against Jet.

Using Jet’s shock to his advantage, Zuko got up and opened the bedroom door. He didn’t know his way around the apartment but he figured it out and made it to the main hallway which led to the stairs and eventually the exit. 

Before he knew it, he was in his bedroom and crying unto his pillow. _He punched Jet._ Fear began to overcome Zuko as he realized Jet could retaliate and tell someone about him and all the things he’s done or felt. He muffled his sobs with his hands. His father was going to kill him. 

He stayed up the whole night hoping Jet would text him. At 7am, his phone pinged.

_J: call me asap 7:02am_

His heart began to beat loudly. As much as he would have preferred to call him at that moment, he knew he had to wait till Zhao left for work. _Guess he’s arriving late to school._

He paced around his room anxiously and paused when he heard the front door slam shut. He was gone. Zuko dives for his phone and immediately calls Jet who answers after a few pings.

“Jet?”

_“Zuko.”_

“I’m sorry, Jet…”

 _“I’ve been thinking the whole night and.. I think we need to stop what we’re doing,”_ Jet utters.

He gasps. 

“J-Jet no, I’m so sorry! Please don’t leave me,” he cries out. He wasn’t sure what he’d do without Jet in his life. Although Jet had his rough side, he did comfort him when he needed it. There would be no one to comfort him now. 

_“Look, I won’t tell anyone about anything. I just need some time. I’ll hit you up if these emotions ever resolve. Goodbye, Zuko.”_

Before he can answer, Jet hangs up. 

So many things were going wrong this week and it’s only Tuesday morning. He didn’t even have it in him to cry after spending so much time crying. He’s cried enough these last two days.

He heads into the bathroom to shower, taking his time since he’s already late. His lavender body wash helps relax him a little but he can’t help but to feel numb. He stays in the shower till his fingertips begin to prune up. 

He moisturizes and changes into his uniform. He dries out his hair with his towel then heads downstairs after grabbing his bag. 

His appetite is gone so he doesn’t eat, just messages the chauffeur that he’s ready. It’s already 11am, half an hour before lunch so there wasn’t a point in eating right now either way. 

His chauffeur gets caught up in traffic so by the time he actually makes it to school, it’s the middle of lunch. He checks in with the front desk lady and heads into the cafeteria to grab spicy noodles and vegetables. 

The prince then heads to his empty classroom and waits for English class. He realizes he’s going to see Sokka for the first time since yesterday’s quarrel. The anxiety began to set in again. _Why was he so nervous? He’s the prince!_

He throws the noodle carten in the trash and his silverware he puts in his backpack after wrapping it in a napkin. He shakes out his body and tries to relax as he walks out the door towards his english class. 

Of course, he’s the first in the room. He sits at his corner desk and reaches into his backpack, cursing when he realizes he forgot his book. He doesn’t even know why or when he took it out of his backpack, he never reads it outside of school. 

He huffs and takes out his homework instead. He stares blankly ahead, fingers fidgeting since he had no pages to twiddle. 

He tenses as hears the door open since he knows its Water Tribe. The two always seem to be the first in their classes. He’s also glad that, at least, in this classroom his right side of the face is facing the door and Sokka so he’s never caught by surprise. 

After a few more minutes, chatter fills the hallways. _Lunch must’ve ended._ Mrs. Song and the rest of the class filter into the room talking loudly amongst themselves. 

“Settle down, class! Today we have something exciting planned. We will be doing a two week project on career planning!” 

_What career planning? He’s the crowned prince._

“The exciting part is that this will be done in pairs, which I will be choosing!” 

_Oh no._ Oh no no no. Luck has never been on his side and he just knows he’s going to get paired with the boy beside him. He hopes the spirits will at least give him a little break.

“Sokka and Zuko!”

_And of course they’re not._

They both look at each other, the news still shocking to him. Sokka’s eyes widen even more once they lock eyes with his. _Does his scar still shock him?_

The rest of the class moves around to sit with their partners and surprisingly, Sokka scoots his desk closer. 

“Dude, what happened to your face?”

 _What the fuck._ Zuko gives him a dirty look. Who asks something so personal? Especially after saying it so rudely. No one knows the story behind his scar apart from the spectators who were there that day. What makes him think he deserved to know?

“None of your business, Water Tribe.”

“Did you beat up another student?” 

Zuko looks at him in confusion. _Did he really think a student gave him the scar?_

“Sure,” he entertains. 

The other boy makes another weird face but moves on. “So I guess we’re partners, unfortunately.”

“Yeah, guess so,” he responds. 

“Well Mrs. Song says she wants us to get to know each other before we officially begin the project so… I guess I’ll go first.

I’m Sokka. I’m an older brother and currently live in Republic City with my dad and little sister. Your turn.”

Zuko pales. He hates talking about his life and especially hates talking about his family. 

“Um- well, I’m Zuko. I’m the crowned prince of the Fire Nation,” he states.

“That’s it? I already know all this, tell me something else,” Sokka presses.

“There’s nothing else to tell,” he retorts.

“Dude, you’ve got to be fucking with me. You’re the _prince_ , your life must be so interesting. There’s absolutely nothing else you want to tell?”

“Nothing at all.”

Sokka glances at his face, “Not even how you got that?”

Zuko clenches his fists. 

“Don’t you know it’s rude to ask people about their scars?” 

Sokka’s eyes widened and waves his arms back and forth.

“W-what, no! Tui, no! I’m talking about the bruise!”

Zuko’s own eyes widen and he presses his hand against his right eye. It’s sore and painful and _Zuko, you idiot, how did you not notice you had a bruise._

“Oh! Yes. The bruise. The bruise.. I- uh- I did in fact get in a fight with a student. Remember I said I did?” He hopes it sounds convincing enough.

“Right… Well, why did you fight another student?”

“Well… he started it?”

“I’m starting to believe you less and less. Not sure what’s the lie though: fighting another student or him starting the fight.”

“I’m not asking you to believe me. He’s another student and he did start the fight,” and it technically wasn’t a lie. Jet **is** a student, he just doesn’t attend the academy. 

“Should I be worried that there’s a kid with a burn around here?” Sokka attacks.

“What’s your problem? I’ve never attacked anyone, ever, with my bending.”

“So I’m supposed to believe your little sister is more evil than you?”

 _Azula._ Agni, yes she was but he wasn’t going to tell Sokka that.

“Believe what you want to believe,” he remarks.

“Well I’m only asking for my safety. How can I be sure the kid doesn’t look worse than you?”

“He threw the first punch and I threw one back. End of story. We both have matching black eyes and that’s it. I reciprocated,” Zuko discloses. Agni, he’s getting a headache.

“Okay, class! I hope this was a successful first day for you! We won’t be meeting up with our partners in class again till next week so please plan a day when you can meet this week,” Mrs. Song says.

They look at one another. 

“Well I guess we can meet up during our study period later,” Zuko sighs. Sokka nods and they stay quiet till they are released from class. 

What an eventful two days.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you once again <3  
> Not proof-read


End file.
